Biden to hold second summit for Democracy amid differences in Congress
2023.03.27 12:58
Biden to hold second summit for Democracy amid differences in Congress
By Ray Johnson
Budrigannews.com – The second Summit for Democracy, which is being organized by the United States and will take place virtually this week, has been criticized as an illustration of the sluggish progress the Biden administration has made in making democracy and human rights the focus of its foreign policy.
The event will begin on Wednesday and involve 120 nations, technology companies, and civil society organizations. It will also include strategically important nations like India, Poland, and Israel, where rights groups have expressed concerns about the state of democracy.
Privileges advocates have commended the organization for putting a focus on vote based system, yet say there is little proof the nations joining the highest point have gained ground on working on their popular governments, and that there is no proper component to hold members to the unobtrusive responsibilities made at the principal meeting.
According to experts, the administration has also been reluctant to make the difficult decisions required to demonstrate that it places human rights at the center of its foreign policy.
Tess McEnery, who worked on human rights issues during the Biden administration until August 2022 and is currently employed by the Project on Middle East Democracy, stated, “I think this administration, like any other administration, has just found that that is too difficult.”
She went on to say that “instead we have a summit” because the United States is unable to significantly alter its relationship with countries like India that are essential to its strategic interests.
Emergencies like the conflict in Ukraine have just made Biden’s objective of revitalizing vote based systems against absolutist rulers more troublesome.
Washington has urged other nations to support Ukraine and accused Russia of atrocities during its invasion. However, this has occasionally been at the expense of a firm stance on democracy and rights in other places, such as Venezuela, where a U.S. delegation attempted to persuade its authoritarian government to pump more oil in March.
Christopher Hernandez-Roy of the Center for Strategic and International Studies stated in a briefing call prior to the summit, “The Biden administration has gone so far as to… negotiate with one dictator to counter another,” demonstrating a willingness to set aside principles to address pressing issues.
Despite the fact that they are aware of “legitimate criticism” directed at the administration regarding the issue, U.S. officials deny accusations that they have backed down when it comes to human rights or democratic deterioration.
A senior official from the Biden administration stated, “I will defend the fact that human rights comes up in every bilateral relationship we have.”
The first summit, which was originally intended to be held in person, was held virtually because of COVID-19. The second summit, which was postponed for several months and will now primarily take place online,
One civil society activist, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are involved in organizing the summit, stated that the virtual format makes it harder for participants to push for bold reforms and contributes to the perception that the summit has been de-prioritized.
The United States, Costa Rica, Zambia, the Netherlands, and South Korea will jointly host the summit this year. According to U.S. officials, this will encourage the nations to be more involved in the process.
