Conclusion

Abstract

The conclusion summarizes the argument and assesses potential for future cultural conflicts in world politics. Cultural and political divides come from different sources, but in times of acute interstate competition culture and politics tend to reinforce each other, exacerbating international tensions. Future competition for values is not likely to take the form of a new Cold War yet the intense rivalry for power and rules means a continuous culture wars in world politics. Russia is not doomed to be the United States’ Dark Double. US-Russia relations may gradually become less dependent on presenting each other as potential ideological threats if the two nations learn to reframe bilateral relations in value-free terms.