• Latest
  • Trending
Can Biden’s ‘divisive’ democracy summit deliver?

Can Biden’s ‘divisive’ democracy summit deliver?

December 9, 2021
UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

March 25, 2023
Water cut. Image credits - Walter Randlehoff / Unsplash

10 hour water cut in areas of Colombo today

March 25, 2023
Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

March 25, 2023
The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

March 25, 2023
Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

March 25, 2023
Ramadan. Image credits - Andrew Lancaster / Unsplash

Ramadan 2023: Fasting hours and iftar times around the world

March 24, 2023
Exchange Rate

Foreign Currency Official Exchange Rates from Central Bank of Sri Lanka

March 24, 2023
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL)

With IMF bailout, Sri Lanka will have healthy dollar reserves in 4 years: CBSL governor

March 24, 2023
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin

China calls on Western lenders to ease debt pressure on developing countries

March 24, 2023
Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

March 24, 2023
Rahul Gandhi gets two-year jail sentence in “Modi surname” case

Rahul Gandhi gets two-year jail sentence in “Modi surname” case

March 24, 2023
Argentine goalkeeper Leandro Requena scores an outrageous goal direct from a goal kick.

Goalkeeper scores from a goal kick – it could set the record for the longest range goal in history

March 23, 2023
  • About Us
  • Advertisements
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
Sunday, March 26, 2023
No Result
View All Result
NewsIn.Asia
  • Home
  • Around South Asia
    • All
    • Afghanistan
    • Bangladesh
    • Bhutan
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Myanmar
    • Nepal
    • Pakistan
    • Sri Lanka
    UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

    UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

    Water cut. Image credits - Walter Randlehoff / Unsplash

    10 hour water cut in areas of Colombo today

    Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

    Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

    Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

    Exchange Rate

    Foreign Currency Official Exchange Rates from Central Bank of Sri Lanka

    The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL)

    With IMF bailout, Sri Lanka will have healthy dollar reserves in 4 years: CBSL governor

    Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin

    China calls on Western lenders to ease debt pressure on developing countries

    Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

    Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

  • World
    • All
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
    Ramadan. Image credits - Andrew Lancaster / Unsplash

    Ramadan 2023: Fasting hours and iftar times around the world

    Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin

    China calls on Western lenders to ease debt pressure on developing countries

    Canada sees record population growth in 2022 from immigration

    Canada sees record population growth in 2022 from immigration

    Ukraine

    IMF staff reaches agreement with Ukraine for $15.6 bln program

    The Weeknd

    The Weeknd is the world’s most popular artist, Guinness World Records says

    Manchester United. Image credits - Javid Naderi / Unsplash

    Manchester United is for sale, who could buy the world-famous club?

    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    WhatsApp for iOS gets text detection feature: What is it and how to use

    IMF

    Sri Lanka’s world-beating bonds pin hopes on IMF’s billions

    Putin announces partial mobilization for Russians, threatens enemies

    ICC judges issue arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin

  • Business
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
    • All
    • Books
    • Gaming
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Series
    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    The Weeknd

    The Weeknd is the world’s most popular artist, Guinness World Records says

    Naatu Naatu has millions of views on YouTube and is a viral sensation over social media

    Watch: Oscar winning song Naatu Naatu

    Naatu Naatu has millions of views on YouTube and is a viral sensation over social media

    Indian song ‘Naatu Naatu’ from ‘RRR’ wins Oscar award for best song

    Naatu Naatu has millions of views on YouTube and is a viral sensation over social media

    Naatu Naatu: The RRR song primed for Oscar history

    Keanu Reeves

    11 of the best films to watch in March

    Netflix. Image credits - Souvik Banerjee @rswebsols / Unsplash

    Netflix cuts prices for subscribers in more than 30 countries

    Backstreet Boys

    Backstreet Boys to perform in India after 13 years

    Roald Dahl books

    Roald Dahl books rewritten to remove language deemed offensive

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Science
    • Travel
    Happy. Image credits - Lesly Juarez / Unsplash

    The world’s happiest countries for 2023

    Nepal. Image credits - Toomas Tartes / Unsplash

    Nepal bans solo trekkers throughout the country

    Air quality drops to ‘unhealthy’ level in Colombo

    Air quality drops to ‘unhealthy’ level in Colombo

    Scientists discover enzyme that turns air into electricity, providing a new clean source of energy

    Scientists discover enzyme that turns air into electricity, providing a new clean source of energy

    Toblerone chocolates

    Toblerone chocolates to lose “Swissness” criteria

    Significant increase of overweight and obese individuals in Sri Lanka

    Significant increase of overweight and obese individuals in Sri Lanka

    Vistara airlines to resume operations to Sri Lanka

    Vistara airlines to resume operations to Sri Lanka

    International airlines suspend some US flights over 5G uncertainty

    Saying no to inflight meals can help our planet

    Sri Lanka

    Where are 2023s tourists to Sri Lanka coming from?

    Hazardous health: Jaffna’s growing waste crisis

    Hazardous health: Jaffna’s growing waste crisis

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Climate Change
    • Flat Earth
  • Tech
    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    WhatsApp for iOS gets text detection feature: What is it and how to use

    Nokia

    Nokia changes iconic logo to signal strategy shift

    Selena Gomez and Kylie Jenner

    Selena Gomez dethrones Kylie Jenner on Instagram

    Facebook. Image credits - Solen Feyissa @solenfeyissa

    Facebook & Instagram to test monthly subscription service priced at $11.99

    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    New features introduced in Whatsapp’s latest update

    Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

    Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

    Trending Tags

    • Sillicon Valley
    • Climate Change
    • Election Results
    • Flat Earth
    • Golden Globes
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Mr. Robot
  • Coronavirus
  • Videos
  • Home
  • Around South Asia
    • All
    • Afghanistan
    • Bangladesh
    • Bhutan
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Myanmar
    • Nepal
    • Pakistan
    • Sri Lanka
    UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

    UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

    Water cut. Image credits - Walter Randlehoff / Unsplash

    10 hour water cut in areas of Colombo today

    Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

    Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

    Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

    Exchange Rate

    Foreign Currency Official Exchange Rates from Central Bank of Sri Lanka

    The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL)

    With IMF bailout, Sri Lanka will have healthy dollar reserves in 4 years: CBSL governor

    Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin

    China calls on Western lenders to ease debt pressure on developing countries

    Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

    Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

  • World
    • All
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
    Ramadan. Image credits - Andrew Lancaster / Unsplash

    Ramadan 2023: Fasting hours and iftar times around the world

    Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin

    China calls on Western lenders to ease debt pressure on developing countries

    Canada sees record population growth in 2022 from immigration

    Canada sees record population growth in 2022 from immigration

    Ukraine

    IMF staff reaches agreement with Ukraine for $15.6 bln program

    The Weeknd

    The Weeknd is the world’s most popular artist, Guinness World Records says

    Manchester United. Image credits - Javid Naderi / Unsplash

    Manchester United is for sale, who could buy the world-famous club?

    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    WhatsApp for iOS gets text detection feature: What is it and how to use

    IMF

    Sri Lanka’s world-beating bonds pin hopes on IMF’s billions

    Putin announces partial mobilization for Russians, threatens enemies

    ICC judges issue arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin

  • Business
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
    • All
    • Books
    • Gaming
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Series
    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    The gran who couldn’t: Indu Balachandran’s latest book is for readers of all ages

    The Weeknd

    The Weeknd is the world’s most popular artist, Guinness World Records says

    Naatu Naatu has millions of views on YouTube and is a viral sensation over social media

    Watch: Oscar winning song Naatu Naatu

    Naatu Naatu has millions of views on YouTube and is a viral sensation over social media

    Indian song ‘Naatu Naatu’ from ‘RRR’ wins Oscar award for best song

    Naatu Naatu has millions of views on YouTube and is a viral sensation over social media

    Naatu Naatu: The RRR song primed for Oscar history

    Keanu Reeves

    11 of the best films to watch in March

    Netflix. Image credits - Souvik Banerjee @rswebsols / Unsplash

    Netflix cuts prices for subscribers in more than 30 countries

    Backstreet Boys

    Backstreet Boys to perform in India after 13 years

    Roald Dahl books

    Roald Dahl books rewritten to remove language deemed offensive

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Science
    • Travel
    Happy. Image credits - Lesly Juarez / Unsplash

    The world’s happiest countries for 2023

    Nepal. Image credits - Toomas Tartes / Unsplash

    Nepal bans solo trekkers throughout the country

    Air quality drops to ‘unhealthy’ level in Colombo

    Air quality drops to ‘unhealthy’ level in Colombo

    Scientists discover enzyme that turns air into electricity, providing a new clean source of energy

    Scientists discover enzyme that turns air into electricity, providing a new clean source of energy

    Toblerone chocolates

    Toblerone chocolates to lose “Swissness” criteria

    Significant increase of overweight and obese individuals in Sri Lanka

    Significant increase of overweight and obese individuals in Sri Lanka

    Vistara airlines to resume operations to Sri Lanka

    Vistara airlines to resume operations to Sri Lanka

    International airlines suspend some US flights over 5G uncertainty

    Saying no to inflight meals can help our planet

    Sri Lanka

    Where are 2023s tourists to Sri Lanka coming from?

    Hazardous health: Jaffna’s growing waste crisis

    Hazardous health: Jaffna’s growing waste crisis

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Climate Change
    • Flat Earth
  • Tech
    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    WhatsApp for iOS gets text detection feature: What is it and how to use

    Nokia

    Nokia changes iconic logo to signal strategy shift

    Selena Gomez and Kylie Jenner

    Selena Gomez dethrones Kylie Jenner on Instagram

    Facebook. Image credits - Solen Feyissa @solenfeyissa

    Facebook & Instagram to test monthly subscription service priced at $11.99

    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    New features introduced in Whatsapp’s latest update

    Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

    Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

    Trending Tags

    • Sillicon Valley
    • Climate Change
    • Election Results
    • Flat Earth
    • Golden Globes
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Mr. Robot
  • Coronavirus
  • Videos
NewsIn.Asia
No Result
View All Result
Home Around South Asia China

Can Biden’s ‘divisive’ democracy summit deliver?

Editor by Editor
December 9, 2021
in China, Diplomacy, Top Story, United States
Reading Time: 5 mins read
9 0
A A
Can Biden’s ‘divisive’ democracy summit deliver?
Share on WhatsApp

By Patrick Wintour/The Guardian

London, December 9: Much of the advance commentary about Joe Biden’s two-day Summit for Democracy has been a diplomat’s version of a Charity Ball: long discussions about the guest list and how the guests will show up, and very little about its supposedly noble purpose.

Potentially a rallying point for democracy, after the west’s crushing setback in Afghanistan, the summit has not been receiving rave advance notices even from those that have been invited.

ADVERTISEMENT

Unfocussed, unnecessarily divisive, an NGO merry go round or an extended photo op have been some of the kinder trails.

There have also been noises off. Hungary, the only EU state left off the 110-country guest list, has responded by trying to block the EU attending the virtual event. Middle East potentates also excluded by Biden, such as the UAE, have quietly pointed to the competition between France and the US to sell the country jets.

When Biden promised on the presidential campaign trail to hold the summit, the goal seemed to be to draw a dividing line with Donald Trump’s authoritarian allies and re-establish America’s standing in the world as the champion of human rights and liberty.

“Democracy doesn’t happen by accident,” Biden said in February. “We have to defend it, fight for it, strengthen it, renew it”. The summit was as much about protecting as promoting democracy, as well as being a conscious response to American declinists.

Not surprisingly the biggest ideological and social media barrage against the summit has come from its implicit targets: Russia and China. The countries’ two ambassadors to Washington even penned a joint article denouncing the event as “a product of cold war thinking”. Russia also issued a separate 2,000-word statement detailing the failings of US democracy, covering corporate manipulation of the media, the illegal enforcement of democracy overseas or the false charge that the 2020 election may have been stolen from Donald Trump.

China, irate that Taiwan has made the guest list, has produced a long white paper on the superiorities of the Chinese model of democracy. This echoes the claim made by the foreign minister, Wang Yi, who argued in a speech in April 2021 that “democracy is not Coca-Cola where the US produces the original syrup and the whole world has one flavour. If there is only one model, once civilisation on the planet, the world will lose its vitality and be devoid of growth.”

The white paper explains “There is no fixed model of democracy; it manifests itself in many forms. The principles of One Person, One Vote and party competition underlying the western electoral system are propagated by them as the sole criterion for democracy.

“China has chosen a path to democracy suited to a vast country with a large population. As a populous country long plagued by weak economic foundations, China strives to strike a balance between democracy and development. The priority always rests with development, which is facilitated by democracy and in turn boosts the development of democracy. China has never indulged in empty talk on democracy regardless of a country’s development stage.”

It continues: “In China, there are no opposition parties. But China’s political party system is not a system of one-party rule. Nor is it one in which multiple parties vie for power and govern in turn. It is a multiparty cooperation system in which the Communist party of China exercises state power.”

At one point the paper gets into a spectacular muddle on how democracy and dictatorship coexist in China. Concepts such as media freedom and judicial independence are entirely absent from the white paper, or any explanation of how the Chinese nation ever chose that the party alone decide the national interest.

That Russia and China have both gone to such lengths to defend their “democracies’ suggests the summit has at least hit an exposed nerve – or that the autocracies feel so emboldened by the state of American democracy that they feel they can mount a credible counter offensive.

Daniel Fried, former US ambassador to Poland, fears it may be the latter. “The authoritarians are serious. This is not abstract. Tyrants start wars. Putin is threatening a generalised war with Ukraine. He thinks his time has come again and democracy is on the wane. We have seen this movie before and it does not end well. It’s the 1930s all over again.” There is no more urgent task than for democracies to renew themselves.

Russian Servicemen are seen at a command point during an exercise held by units of the Russian Airborne Troops at Opuk range.

Russian servicemen are seen at a command point during an exercise held by units of the Russian Airborne Troops at Opuk range. Photograph: Sergei Malgavko/TASS

But the gravity of the moment has not stopped the summit being attacked from both right and left in the west. Dr Colin Dueck, a Republican oriented professor speaking at the Heritage Foundation, predicts the summit will be a “virtue-signalling gab fest”. He also suggested the event will highlight how human rights simply is not at the centre of Biden’s US foreign policy – despite his rhetoric. He points to countries such as the UAE and Egypt with which Biden has made deals in office. “It is a campaigning position not a governing position”.

Daniel Larison, writing from the Left in Responsible Statecraft, takes a similar position. “To the extent that ‘bad guys’ are ‘winning’ today, at least part of the explanation for it is that some of them have been given carte blanche by Washington to jail and kill their critics, destabilize other countries, and commit war crimes in reckless military interventions”.

So if the Biden democracy summit is to get past a wall of scepticism, and not be passed off as another Zoom call for NGOs, it needs some granular deliverables or at least lines of work that can be pursued over the next year.

The summit organisers have promised it will focus on three core pillars: “countering authoritarianism, fighting corruption, and promoting respect for human rights”. The issue of technology will run through all three.

On the surface, the inclusion of corruption as a summit theme is an oddity, but according to the Atlantic Council’s Ben Judah, that reflects a position that corruption is not about individual bad actors, but the bad systems that authoritarians exploit.

Other announcements are bubbling up. Biden has confirmed he will be mounting a diplomatic boycott of the Olympic Games. The US will provide a big dollop of cash to the recently launched International Fund for Public Interest Media. A further round of human rights sanctions are set to be announced. Various civil society alliances around technology, corruption and human rights have started appearing.

The fact that campaigners from Belarus or the Hong Kong activist Nathan Law will speak, amid an array of self-organised fringe events, show that the organisers recognise this cannot be an American-owned, or even a solely government-owned, event.

Judah says he is impressed by the quality of the administration’s just-published anti-corruption strategy – after a period of worrying silence on the issues. “It looks as if they will go into the summit with some really solid ideas – something they did not have ahead of the G7 or Cop26”.

END

Related Posts

UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped
Governance

UNHRC periodic report on Lanka wants executive power clipped

March 25, 2023
Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari
Development news

Milinda Moragoda meets Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways Gadkari

March 25, 2023
Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership
India

Rahul Gandhi disqualified from parliamentary membership

March 25, 2023
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin
Around South Asia

China calls on Western lenders to ease debt pressure on developing countries

March 24, 2023
Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day
Diplomacy

Pakistan High Commission celebrates National Day

March 24, 2023
Rahul Gandhi gets two-year jail sentence in “Modi surname” case
India

Rahul Gandhi gets two-year jail sentence in “Modi surname” case

March 24, 2023
  • Electricity

    Power cut schedule for today in Sri Lanka: Uninterrupted power supply

    60146 shares
    Share 24081 Tweet 15027
  • Registration open for National Fuel Pass

    6636 shares
    Share 2692 Tweet 1644
  • Foreign Currency Official Exchange Rates from Central Bank of Sri Lanka

    1794 shares
    Share 724 Tweet 446
  • WATCH : Yohani’s first live performance in India

    789 shares
    Share 328 Tweet 192
  • Power interruption schedule released: Check your area power cut time

    742 shares
    Share 320 Tweet 176
  • About Us
  • Advertisements
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact

© 2022 All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Around South Asia
    • Afghanistan
    • Bangladesh
    • Bhutan
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Myanmar
    • Nepal
    • Pakistan
    • Sri Lanka
  • Around The World
  • Breaking News
  • Business
    • Exchange
  • Climate Change
  • Governance
    • Crime
    • Diplomacy
    • Defense
    • Human Rights
    • Politics
    • Strategic Affairs
  • Lifestyle
    • Books
    • Entertainment
      • Arts
      • Cinema
      • Gaming
      • Music
      • Movie
      • Series
      • TV
    • Health
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Travel
  • Culture
    • Ethnicity
    • Gender
  • Development news
  • Economy
  • Education
  • Environment
  • Coronavirus
  • History
  • National
  • Offbeat
    • Media
    • Music and arts across South Asia
  • Recommended
    • Headlines
    • Highlights
    • Top Picture
    • Top Story
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Cricket
      • LPL
      • IPL
    • Tennis
    • Formula 1
    • NBA
  • Tech
    • Instagram
  • United Nations
  • Weather
  • World
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • United States
  • Videos

© 2022 All rights reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

eskisehir escort -

https://www.vudols.com/

- Sağlık Personeli - mersin escort - Antalya korsan taksi