Does Democracy Matter? The United States and Global Democracy Support

Date : Fri., September 08, 2017 9:30 am to 3:30 pm Category : Conferences/Symposia

Co-Sponsored by Perry World House, Penn Law – CERL, and Penn Department of Russian and East European Studies

Liberal democracy is under siege globally, and the traditional U.S. policy of defending democracy abroad is very much in question. This half-day conference is inspired by FPRI’s new book, which explores the issues in the debate over whether the support of democracy abroad should remain a significant component of American foreign policy – or not. These issues have taken on sharp new relevance with the Trump administration’s downgrading of democracy support. Does democracy abroad still matter to U.S. security interests? Do democracies make safer neighbors and better allies? Does democracy promote peace, security, and economic prosperity? How should the U.S. deal with the democratic recession of the past decade and the authoritarian counter-offensive that has reversed some of the spectacular democracy gains of the 15 years following the fall of the Berlin Wall? Where and how can U.S. democracy assistance be delivered effectively? These are the issues that will be discussed with prominent experts in the field.