Putin’s ‘New Orchestra’ raises doubt about regime’s continued viability

     

  Mikhail Mishustin, Russia’s new prime minister, made his reputation collecting money for Vladimir Putin. His next challenge will be working out ways to spend it, The Financial Times reports… Read more »

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Why the push for democratic transition in Venezuela faltered

     

  The Trump administration’s bid to replace Venezuela’s authoritarian leader Nicolás Maduro hit a roadblock after a meeting with Russian officials in Rome last year—and has never recovered, according to The… Read more »

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Democracy embattled: How to make renewal happen?

     

A growing number of think tanks uses the World Economic Forum’s conference in Davos as an opportunity to release headline grabbing studies, analyst Mike O’Sullivan writes for Forbes. Of the… Read more »

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‘Powder keg’ or ‘pressure cooker’? Iran’s unprecedented legitimacy crisis

     

Iran’s president warned Monday of threats to the Islamic Republic’s “democracy and national sovereignty,” after a body dominated by his ultra-conservative rivals disqualified thousands of candidates, weeks before elections, AFP… Read more »

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30 years after Mongolia’s transition: Has democracy delivered?

     

To protect its sovereignty and independence, Mongolia has walked a geopolitical tightrope tethered by a “good neighbor” policy with Russia and China and a “third neighbor” policy with the United… Read more »

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‘Potentially destabilizing’ coronavirus crisis exposes China’s governance flaws

     

The Chinese Communist Party’s “prestige and legitimacy are both on the line” in how they handle the coronavirus crisis, observers suggest. “Having realized just how serious this is, and how… Read more »

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‘Signposts of Struggle’: Iran’s protest movement endures

     

Human rights sources have reported that detained Iranian protesters are under severe torture in the notorious Fashafuyeh Prison in Tehran by IRGC intelligence agents. The detainees have been subjected to… Read more »

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‘Political Reinvention’: How a democratic counteroffensive can win

     

  We’re living at a transformational moment in history. The survival of open societies is endangered, according to George Soros, founder and chair of the Open Society Foundations. “As I… Read more »

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Venezuela’s endgame ‘closer than Maduro thinks’?

     

  Cuban security officials are a critical ingredient of Nicolas Maduro’s ability to retain power. So, as the Trump administration increases pressure on Venezuela’s pretender president, it must also do the same against… Read more »

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Will ‘unprecedented protests’ end Iraq’s status quo?

     

  Tens of thousands of Iraqis converged on Baghdad to rally against the presence of U.S. military in the country amid a surge of anti-American sentiment unleashed by the targeted… Read more »

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