China’s Belt-and-Road push for global sway – renewed or ‘overhyped’?
As Chinese leader Xi Jinping landed in Myanmar on Friday he hoped to send a clear signal that his country is back in the driver’s seat. Having backed Myanmar, also… Read more »
Category: Analysis
Five transformations require ‘fresh thinking’ on advancing democracy
The thirty years since the end of the cold war have been a time of extraordinary change, notes Jessica T. Mathews, a Distinguished Fellow at (and former President of) the… Read more »
Political competition between governance systems is ‘nothing new’
Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping have established themselves as the world’s most powerful authoritarian leaders in decades. Now it looks like they want to hang on to those… Read more »
Survey reveals Georgians’ ‘alarming’ lack of trust in democratic institutions
Georgians’ trust in the country’s democratic institutions have been shaken by recent events, according to the results of a public opinion survey conducted by the National Democratic Institute (NDI), in… Read more »
Grand strategy toward China needs ‘coalition of the democratic willing’
If it is not to lose its strategic struggle with China in Asia and globally, the United States needs to present an alternative model to Beijing’s authoritarian archetype, says a… Read more »
Fear and learning: Arab world not finished with democracy
A vibrant protest movement is visible in Iran and across the Middle East — but it isn’t calling for Islamic revolution, much less the tired misrule of the mullahs, The… Read more »
Putin’s ‘backhanded tribute to democracy’: A global template for new authoritarians?
Russian President Vladimir Putin named a new prime minister, who was confirmed (Reuters) one day after his predecessor resigned along with Russia’s entire cabinet. Putin also proposed changes (FT) in… Read more »
Democracy Embattled: Towards ‘competitive decadence’?
America used to try to design the world, Russia used to try to sabotage those plans. Now things almost look the other way around, analyst Asli Aydintasbas observes. The decline… Read more »
‘Bad algorithms didn’t break democracy’: Time to rebalance information asymmetry?
Technology companies have governments over a barrel, argues Marietje Schaake, international policy director at Stanford’s Cyber Policy Center. Whether they are maximising traffic flow efficiency, matching pupils with their school… Read more »
‘Beijing’s Global Megaphone’: China waging global propaganda war
Democratic governments should wise up to — and try to thwart — China’s attempts to shape the global narrative about its actions at home and abroad, Freedom House said in… Read more »