海角大神

At the Biden administration鈥檚 second democracy summit taking place this week, the United States is no longer the sole head honcho but is sharing the lead with four co-hosts: South Korea, Costa Rica, Zambia, and the Netherlands.

One might say President Joe Biden has democratized his democracy summit.

After facing international criticism when organizing the first democracy summit in 2021 that the initiative was too top-down and U.S.-driven 鈥� especially given America鈥檚 own serious challenges on the democracy front 鈥� the White House shifted gears and adopted the co-hosting format.

The intent, analysts say, is to send the message that while democracy faces challenges across the globe, it is also democracies in every region of the world that are setting examples of prosperity, stability, and meeting citizens鈥� needs.

Add to that, message No. 2: That the U.S., far from projecting 鈥淭his is how it鈥檚 done,鈥� wants to demonstrate humility and is out to learn as much from the process as any of the 120 participating countries.

The co-hosting format 鈥渋s in response to a criticism that the United States faced the first time around, that this was very unilaterally driven,鈥� says Marti Flacks, Khosravi chair in principled internationalism and director of the human rights initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington. Moreover, she adds, 鈥渢he country- and regional-specific contexts are really where the rubber meets the road in terms of democracy and human rights.鈥�

Also making Mr. Biden鈥檚 second gathering of democracies different is the international context: Russia鈥檚 war in Ukraine places in stark relief the authoritarian threat against democracies, White House officials and analysts say.

Some add that the Ukrainian people鈥檚 determination to preserve their independence and freedoms is inspiring a renewal of democratic aspirations globally.

鈥淭his summit takes place against the backdrop of Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine and Ukrainians鈥� ongoing demonstration of democracy鈥檚 resilience,鈥� says Carisa Nietsche, an associate fellow in transatlantic security and threats to democracy at the Center for a New American Security in Washington.

Their battle 鈥渋s an inspiration to democratic forces around the world,鈥� she says. Ukraine鈥檚 staying power and the solidarity it has awakened among other democracies, she adds, 鈥減rovide a strong counternarrative to what we heard coming out of the pandemic 鈥� that autocracies were better at addressing big challenges.鈥�

Ukraine鈥檚 battle with authoritarian Russia is just one of the signs Freedom House cited to conclude in its annual report early this month that the global struggle for democracy may have reached a 鈥渢urning point鈥� with democracies鈥� prospects brightening in every region of the world. Others cite mass pro-democracy movements in countries as diverse as Iran and Israel as indicators of democracy鈥檚 enduring appeal.

Challenges and lessons

President Biden addressed the summit鈥檚 virtual plenary session Wednesday with an overview of global challenges to democracy. He was joined by Republic of Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol on democracy delivering shared prosperity; Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte on democracy delivering justice for all; Zambia President Hakainde Hichilema on democracy delivering strong institutions; and Costa Rica President Rodrigo Chaves Robles on democracy delivering inclusion and equality.

On Thursday the five co-hosts are set to chair discussions among leaders on key challenges democracies are facing, including corruption; free, fair, and transparent elections; press freedom; youth participation in democracy; and dealing with the good and bad of technology鈥檚 impact on democracy.

Mr. Biden as presidential candidate made bolstering democracy a pillar of his foreign policy platform, and came into office declaring the confrontation between democracy and autocracy the century鈥檚 defining battle. But his first two years in the White House have not ushered in a global democratic renaissance.

A recent report from the research institute Varieties of Democracy estimates that 72% of the world鈥檚 population now lives in autocracies, up from 46% in 2012. This month, Freedom House declared 2022 the 17th consecutive year of global democratic decline 鈥� although the freedom watchdog鈥檚 annual report did find that the 鈥減ace鈥� of democracy鈥檚 decline has slowed.

鈥淧ageantry over policy鈥�

Given that context, some experts call the summits a distraction from playing hardball against autocrats.

In an article this week in Foreign Policy, Jon Temin, who served on the State Department policy planning staff under President Barack Obama, sums up the democracy summits as 鈥減ageantry over policy.鈥� Mr. Biden, he says, should focus less on celebrating those at the head of the democracy class and more on directly challenging backsliders and rising authoritarians.

鈥淲ashington cannot advance the cause of democracy simply by bolstering those who champion it, [but] must also confront the authoritarians responsible for democratic decline,鈥� writes Mr. Temin, now vice president of policy and programs at the Truman Center for National Policy in Washington.

The U.S., he says, should focus more on making 鈥渢he hard choices between values and interests鈥� instead of skirting them.

Once again this year, the summit鈥檚 invitation list raised eyebrows and elicited charges of hypocrisy. Perceived democracy backsliders Hungary and Turkey, both NATO allies, were shunned, while India and the Philippines 鈥� both facing criticism for worsening human rights records and rising authoritarian tendencies 鈥� were included.

Others say, however, that the co-hosting format goes some ways toward addressing accusations of hypocrisy and Western democracies鈥� arrogance.

Sharing the hosting spotlight 鈥渋s sending the strong message that this is not just about the United States, but that strengthening democracy is a team sport and requires participation around the globe,鈥� says Ms. Nietsche at the Center for a New American Security.

Inclusion of 鈥渢he Global South鈥� among the hosts is especially important, she says, as it underscores democracy鈥檚 relevance to developed and developing countries alike. It will also allow for including topics of particular importance to the Global South, she adds, noting that Costa Rica will chair discussions on involvement of youth in democratic governance.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 a key concern for countries across Latin America and Africa,鈥� she says, 鈥渨here youth populations are large and growing.鈥�

Focus on prosperity

Other proponents of the democracy summits say that perhaps their greatest strength is the inclusion of civil society and the private-sector business community as crucial partners in the battle to stave off rising authoritarianism.

Some call the economic dimension of the democracy struggle key, noting that it is the freedoms and guarantees of the democratic system 鈥� such as the rule of law 鈥� that have allowed free societies to prosper.

鈥淭he idea of a robust marketplace of ideas, with freedom of speech and freedom of association, that is really crucial for real innovation,鈥� says Suzanne Spaulding, director of the Defending Democratic Institutions project at CSIS. 鈥淐hina struggles to match our level of innovation.鈥�

Ms. Nietsche highlights the focus the U.S. is placing on initiatives that aim to make technology a partner in strengthening democracy. She notes that the summit process will launch diverse initiatives, among them connecting civil society with messaging technologies, limiting exports of surveillance technologies to autocracies, and developing rare-earth synthetics to address dependencies on autocracies like China.

鈥淎 big emphasis we鈥檙e going to see coming out of this summit will be countering the misuse of technology,鈥� she says.

Yes, 鈥減ageantry鈥� will no doubt be part of Mr. Biden鈥檚 democracy summit, Ms. Nietsche says.

But noting that the process will result in hundreds of projects 鈥渁iming for measurable outcomes鈥� and led by leaders, business, and civil society, she adds, 鈥淚f we have to take a little bit of pageantry along with the initiatives aimed at advancing democracy going forward, I think it鈥檚 well worth it.鈥�