Russian nostalgia for Soviet era on the rise
Most Russians regard the loss of the USSR as a negative event, according to a poll conducted this month by the independent Levada Center. Some 63 percent see the collapse… Read more »
Inward-looking EU ‘in hock to authoritarians’
Over the last five years, the European Council on Foreign Relations’ annual Scorecard has tracked the European Union’s diminishing ability to influence its neighbors. In 2015, the story became one… Read more »
Egypt’s transition wasn’t doomed to fail
The fifth anniversary of Egypt‘s 2011 uprising has produced an oddly structuralist set of reflections in which the failure of its democratic transition has taken on an almost foreordained quality, notes… Read more »
Putinism, Islamism no alternative to liberal democracy
Russian President Vladimir Putin and the extremist Islamic State group are both engaged in efforts at state building that share two qualities: each seeks to create a political alternative to… Read more »
Africa: Partnerships for Meaningful Elections
More than 15 African countries held national elections in 2015–including Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, and Tanzania–and a similar number is set to do so in 2016, notably the… Read more »
Communism better than democracy – for Vietnam party boss
Vietnam’s Communist regime ended an unprecedented internal power struggle Thursday by deciding to stick to the status quo over a more reform-minded challenger, USA Today reports: Nguyen Phu Trong, who… Read more »
China’s Grand Strategy raises ‘world’s most significant foreign policy question’
President Xi Jinping appears to be treading a similar path to the Chinese emperors during the legendary surpluses of the Han dynasty, an age characterized by the first Chinese… Read more »
‘Mainland-ization’ undermining Hong Kong’s democracy
Hong Kong lagged behind its neighbors such as Taiwan, South Korea and the Philippines in terms of rights and freedoms enjoyed by individuals, an annual study by a US-based research… Read more »
Are falling oil prices good for democracy?
Authoritarian regimes such as Saudi Arabia and Russia have had to slash government spending because of the drop in oil prices, notes Erik Voeten, Associate Professor of Geopolitics and Justice in… Read more »
Elections highlight ‘Struggle for the Soul of Iran’
Iran has excluded Hassan Khomeini, grandson of the founder of the Islamic republic and a cleric with ties to reformist politicians, from contesting elections to the country’s powerful Assembly of… Read more »