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Written by Kathrin Bachleitner (IKEA Foundation Research Fellow in International Relations), Collective Memory in International Relations is published today by Oxford University Press.

Collective memory carries the past into the present. This book provides a novel, comprehensive framework to trace the role of collective memory in international relations (IR). It locates the origins of a country’s memory within the international environment and inquires how memory guides states through time in world politics. Collective memory, as such, not only shapes countries and their international interactions, but the international sphere also plays an essential role in how countries approach the past.

The book features a historical comparative case study on the influence of the Nazi legacy on international outcomes. It includes as of yet unpublished archival documents, interviews, and newspaper reports. Further, it outlines new definitions of the manifestations of memory in world politics, allowing scholars to understand the long-term consequences of public remembrance on global politics.

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