Recognizing and countering authoritarian resurgence
A new book is warning of an authoritarian surge around the world led by China, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela, who are using sophisticated methods to silence dissent and… Read more »
Category: Democratic degradation
Authoritarianism Goes Global
Over the past decade, illiberal powers have become emboldened and gained influence within the global arena. Leading authoritarian countries―including China, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela―have developed new tools… Read more »
Venezuela’s failed state: is there light at the end of the tunnel?
“Widespread Blackouts Loom As Venezuela’s Dams Run out of Water” was the ominous headline from the PanAm Post on March 16. And even though the government blames El Niño, engineers apparently have… Read more »
Is Democracy in Decline?
For all the commentary on democratic recession, there has been nothing like the kind of “reverse wave” that Samuel P. Huntington’s The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century… Read more »
Democracy in retreat?
Despite the current democratic regression, there are three reasons why democracy advocates should maintain hope for the future, says Carl Gershman, President of the National Endowment for Democracy. The first… Read more »
Central Europe’s fascist revival
Slovakia’s March 6 general elections have catapulted a neo-fascist party into parliament and strengthened the position of another ultra-nationalist formation, notes analyst Janusz Bugajski. The results highlight a broader European… Read more »
EU surrendering soft power with ‘morally bankrupt’ Turkey deal
The EU-Turkey deal lauded by German Chancellor Angela Merkel as a possible “breakthrough” in the refugee crisis met with considerable criticism after being presented to the European Parliament on Wednesday,… Read more »
Kosovo edging closer to anarchy?
Scenes of violence at Kosovo’s parliament during which opposition MPs released tear gas to prevent the election of a new president were “extremely worrying“, said the European Union: The protests… Read more »
Russia, Ukraine and the ‘surrealism of realism’
Before the war in Ukraine, respected Russia experts have long claimed that Russia had already become a “post-imperial” state and stressed that they saw no grounds for adversarial relations between… Read more »
Poll shows Uganda’s democracy has ‘stagnated, regressed’
\ Last Saturday, as Yoweri Museveni was declared president of Uganda for a fifth consecutive term, the military rolled armored cars down the streets of the capital, Kampala, and police surveillance helicopters… Read more »