Authoritarian states have taken a “whole-of-government” approach to weaponizing previously benign activities like diplomacy, media, investment flows, and civil society activity, says a new report. But their activities betray a… Read more »
How to support Iraq’s protesters while recognizing the limits to the government’s ability to handle these protesters’ demands? Washington Institute Senior Fellow Michael Knights asks. “We should not be afraid… Read more »
Whether the unprecedented wave of protests leads to sustainable democratic transitions depends in large part on the strategic sophistication of illiberal regimes and democratic actors, including the latter’s ability to… Read more »
Online disinformation campaigns supported by fundamental changes in military and geopolitical strategies of major players such as Russia and China harden tribal factions and undermine the security of infrastructure systems in… Read more »
The return of the Rajapaksa brothers to power in Sri Lanka highlights a broader and more alarming trend: the rise of illiberal democracy in South Asia as Sri Lanka joins… Read more »
The cluster of organizations around the National Endowment for Democracy has evolved into “a huge apparatus” with its strong norms and operational principles, one expert observes, at a time when… Read more »
Russia’s human rights situation is getting worse with each passing year, says Tatanya Lokshina of Human Rights Watch. The regime routinely “messes up” because it has destroyed almost all feedback… Read more »
Central and Eastern Europe’s transition to democracy has not been smooth. But there are grounds for hope, notes Alison Smale. What would Vaclav Havel have made of post-1989 developments? she asked… Read more »
In recent years some European states have suffered dramatic regression, while others have experienced more subtle forms of democratic erosion. In response to this challenge, new European Commission President Ursula… Read more »
No empire in history has disintegrated as quickly or as bloodlessly as the Soviet one, in the remarkable year that saw the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989…. Read more »