32503

The (Populist) Radical Right and the International

Julia Simon

Comments

Over the past decade, the (populist) right has gained significant influence, often even in the form of governmental power, across different countries and regions. While firmly rooted in national contexts and nationalist ideas, contemporary leaders, parties, and movements on the right are remarkably international. Focusing on the transatlantic political space, this seminar traces and studies the connections, trends, commonalities, and consequences of the (populist) right that transcend domestic contexts. The first part of the seminar presents and critically reflects on analytical approaches to ‘populist foreign policy’ and a range of relevant concepts including (reactionary) internationalism, civilizationism, managerialism, multilateralism, and isolationism. Based on this conceptual foundation, we will subsequently be able to systematically study, compare, assess, and discuss a range of current developments and example cases across Europe and the United States. These cases will illuminate e.g. how governments dominated by populists relate to the Liberal International Order and specific international organizations, and how they emulate and legitimize each other or justify illiberal policies and autocratic transformations. Furthermore, we will zero in on the ways non-governmental (populist) agents and movements construct, promote, and mobilize far-right ideational, epistemic, and organizational networks in online and offline environments. close