This paper seeks to investigate honour-seeking behaviour as a key emotional driver in relations between Russia and Japan. The paper argues that the bilateral interactions between both the States have not been shaped solely by material interests, but by concerns of “face”, recognition, and prestige, through theories on collective emotions and emotional diplomacy. Taking the two year Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905 as the turning point of humiliation and vengeance, the paper shall trace the manner in which civilisational self-images and collective memories continue to have an impact on symbolic engagement, diplomatic postures, and even territorial disputes in the post-Cold War period. Further, the paper situates China in the background, as a civilisational reference, to contextualise these dynamics of honour.