FCCC Talk: Elite power struggles in China and the Soviet Union by Joseph Torigian

The political successions in the Soviet Union and China after Stalin and Mao, respectively, are often explained as triumphs of inner-party democracy, leading to a victory of “reformers” over “conservatives” or “radicals.” In his new book “Prestige, Manipulation and Coercion”, Joseph Torigian argues that the post-cult of personality power struggles in history’s two greatest Leninist regimes were instead shaped by the politics of personal prestige, historical antagonisms, backhanded political maneuvering, and violence. Mining newly discovered material from Russia and China, Torigian challenges the established historiography and suggests a new way of thinking about the nature of power in authoritarian regimes, and how those trends may persist until the present day.

About the speaker: Joseph Torigian is Assistant Professor at the School of International Service at American University in Washington, D.C., where he researches the politics of authoritarian regimes with a specific focus on elite power struggles, civil-military relations, and grand strategy. He is also one of the leading experts in Sino-Russian comparative politics, security studies and foreign policy. His latest book on elite power struggles in China and the Soviet Union after Stalin and Mao will be published in May. He is currently writing a biography of Xi Jinping’s father, Xi Zhongxun.

If you want a copy of his new book, click here:
Prestige, Manipulation, and Coercion
Elite Power Struggles in the Soviet Union and China after Stalin and Mao
Joseph Torigian