Category: Authoritarianism

‘Revolutionary situation unfolding’ in Belarus

     

A tax on “social parasites” is stirring up public angst in Belarus, according to reports. A classic revolutionary situation may be unfolding in Europe’s last dictatorship, notes analyst Leon Aron:… Read more »

Ideological aggression to be expected from ‘Putin: Operative in the Kremlin’

     

The Kremlin’s ‘active measures’ to undermine Western democracies mark a more aggressive step up from Russia’s earlier efforts to assert soft power, discussed here by Brookings analyst Fiona Hill. Meanwhile,… Read more »

EU leaders ‘idle’ in face of Russia’s information warfare?

     

European Union leaders remain idle in the face of Russia’s information warfare, which is increasing the Kremlin’s influence on public opinion in the West, reports suggest. “Russians know the art… Read more »

Azerbaijan: no progress on key reforms

     

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) should suspend Azerbaijan’s membership for failing to carry out key reforms, a coalition of 21 groups including Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, PEN International,… Read more »

China cracks down on labor as workers lose leading advocate

     

China’s crackdown on labor activists is well depicted in a new film, an exposé that coincides with the passing of one of Chinese workers’ most impressive international advocates. The conviction last… Read more »

Cuba: appeasement never works

     

Rosa María Payá will be presenting an appeal for a judicial review of the conviction of Angel Carromero for the events that caused the death of her father, Oswaldo Payá, and… Read more »

Democracy key to “Building ‘Situations of Strength’”

     

World politics took a sharp turn for the worse over the past five years as two decades of great power cooperation gave way to a new era of geopolitical competition,… Read more »

Cuba blocks OAS chief’s visit to receive dissident prize

     

provocCuban authorities prevented the head of the Organization of American States (OAS), a former Chilean minister and an ex-president of Mexico from traveling to Cuba to attend an award ceremony… Read more »

Russia creates propaganda unit to wage information warfare

     

Russia has added information warfare troops to its military, Moscow’s defense chief said in a speech to parliament on Wednesday, The Hill reports: Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu would not… Read more »