Anti-populism, populism, and the politicisation of foreign policy: evidence from Czechia and France

This article argues that anti-populism, in itself and in its dialogical interaction with populism, feeds the politicisation of foreign policy. Anti-populism inverts but mirrors the populist logics of differentiation, legitimation, and mobilisation, and as such translates in a similar proclivity to use foreign policy as a terrain to attack and mark a difference with political adversaries. In testing and illustrating this argument, this article analyses how the Russia-Ukraine war has featured in the anti-populist strategies of governing parties in Czechia and France. In both countries, patterns of anti-populist politicisation have preceded dynamics of populist politicisation and were articulated in support of opposite policy options: anti-populist politicisation backed economic and military aid to Ukraine while populist politicisation, seeking to capitalise on war fatigue politically, criticised its extent. Overall, the choreography between populist and anti-populist politicisation contributes to redefine the link between politics and policy.