The Image of Russia in the Discourse of French Presidents: François Mitterand

The article analyses the image of Russia after the collapse of the USSR in the public speeches by François Mitterrand, President of the French Republic. Mitterrand’s presidency coincided with the end of the Cold War, when a new political system had just emerged in Russia. France was struggling for a new place in the post-bipolar world order and reshaping relations with a reformed Russia, cooperation with the reformed Russian state. The authors present existing definitions of the state image and analyze its components. The image of Russia in Mitterrand’s public speeches is studied with post-structural discourse analysis method. The authors identified key categories shaping Russia’s image in Mitterrand’s discourse: history, democratization, military and economic interactions, and geopolitics. France’s historical engagement with the USSR influenced the French president’s perception of a reformed Russian state. Russia’s democratization emerged as the primary factor fostering closer ties. As a result of the study, the authors present a generalized image of Russia in Mitterrand’s discourse: the perception of Russia as a state that lost its former power and needed guidance in democratic development. According to the typology of international images developed by R. Herrmann and M. Fischerkeller, the authors classify Russia’s image in François Mitterrand’s perception during the analyzed period as an “ally”. In other words, the authors conclude with the perception of a generalized image of Russia in Mitterrand's discourse: unless Russia resurrected its “imperial” ambitions (which Mitterrand believed to be a potential threat to Europe and thus feared them), France could accept the state as an ally.

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