Council of Councils
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Introduction
Over the last several decades, governments have collectively pledged to slow global warming. But despite intensified diplomacy, the world is already facing the consequences of climate…
Democracy, Human Rights, and American Foreign Policy
Project Expert
About the Project
What role should the promotion of democracy and human rights play in U.S. foreign policy? Over the last decade, human rights groups have documented a decline in freedom around the world. In some countries, elected leaders used democracy to get into power and then abused that power; in others, such as Russia, autocrats have increased the level of repression against their opponents. The United States must weigh the importance of promoting democracy and respect for human rights, and determine what tools are most effective in doing so. How should the United States help democratic activists build stronger parties and coalitions? Can it help protect such people while they work for democracy in dangerous settings? These are issues I address in roundtables and regular writings. I faced many of these issues directly, as Assistant Secretary of State in the Reagan administration, Deputy National Security Advisor for Global Democracy Strategy in the George W. Bush administration, and Special Representative for Venezuela and Iran in the Trump administration. In this project, I examine my experiences in government and out with the hope of elucidating how the United States can most effectively promote democracy.
Blogs
The repression of the Catholic Church in Nicaragua continues to deepen, but Pope Francis has not responded with the levels of support that are needed.
Doomsday predictions about the consequences of Israel's election are overwrought. Some of the proposed legal reforms would bring Israel's system closer to the U.S. model.
Touring Cuba is all the rage these days, with new scheduled flights, cruise ships, and largely phony "educational" visits.
But one man who will not be visiting Cuba is the Secretary-General of the…
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Diplomacy and International Institutions
The International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague is in the news in 2024 because its prosecutor has asked the court to issue warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and… -
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The war in Gaza has focused attention once again on the search for solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The solution favored by the United States, the European Union, most of the world’s de…
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Nothing may seem more obvious to supporters of democracy than the need to oppose, punish, and deter coups. But defining a coup, let alone reacting sensibly to one, is difficult for many democratic go…
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Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy
After decades of democratic progress, human rights and the rule of law in Mexico are under siege. It would be a grave error for the United States to believe that its only interests in Mexico are trade and border security, and that Mexico's democratic stability will not affect either. On the contrary, U.S. financial, commercial, and security interests now assume a stable and cooperative Mexico that may disappear if democracy and the rule of law do so. -
The Israeli debate on judicial reform involves issues unique to that country's political system, but also raises questions that every democracy must address. What are the proper powers of courts and of elected institutions in democratic systems of government?
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There was a joke told during the Cold War about the citizens of the Soviet Union. The Soviet line about human rights was that U.S. human rights and democracy policy constituted an unacceptable interf…
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Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy
In Tunisia, President Kais Saied's consolidation of power and embrace of autocratic measures threaten the lone remaining success story of the Arab Spring. The Biden Administration should move from rhetorical support for democracy in Tunisia to the use of American financial assistance to press for reforms, and should not support Tunisia’s requested IMF loan unless they are forthcoming. -
International human rights NGOs are important champions of basic human rights for people across the globe. They have great influence in civil society and government. But they are also complex organizations, subject to the biases and governance problems of large bureaucracies (and their leaders). They should be subject to careful assessment themselves.
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Should the United States be promoting democracy and human rights in friendly monarchies? Yes — human rights improvements, not regime change, should be the goal, working especially in areas where progress is pragmatically possible.
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Why did the US effort to promote democracy in Venezuela fail? The lessons learned there should inform democracy promotion efforts around the globe.
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The U.S. government spends billions to promote democracy. It could get more for its money through better internal coordination, and by relying more on NGOs and its own expertise when implementing programs, rather than hiring profit-making companies to do the work.