I do think this loose alliance of authoritarian states.[1] - Russia, Iran, North Korea, etc. - poses some meaningful challenge to democracies, especially insofar as the authoritarian states coordinate to undermine the democratic ones, e.g., through information warfare that increases polarization.
However, I’d emphasize “loose” here, given they share no ideology. That makes them different vs. what binds together the free world [2] or what held together the Cold War’s communist bloc. Such a loose coalition is merely opportunistic and transactional, and likely to dissolve if the opportunity dissipates, i.e., if the U.S. retreats from its role as the global police. Perhaps an apt historical example is how the victors in WWII splintered into NATO and the Warsaw Pact once Nazi Germany was defeated.
Thanks Mike. I agree that the alliance is fortunately rather loose in the sense that most of these countries share no ideology. (In fact, some of them should arguably be ideological enemies, e.g., Islamic theocrats in Iran and Maoist communists in China).
But I worry that this alliance is held together by a hatred of (or ressentiment in general) Western secular democratic principles for ideological and (geo-)political reasons. Hatred can be an extremely powerful and unifying force. (Many political/ideological movements are arguably primarily defined, united, and motivated by what they hate, e.g., Nazism by the hatred of Jews, communism by the hatred of capitalists, racists hate other ethnicities, Democrats hate Trump and racists, Republicans hate the woke and communists, etc.)
So I worry that as long as Western democracies to influence international affairs, this alliance will continue to exist. And I certainly hope that Western democracies will continue to be powerful and worry that the world (and the future) will become a worse place if not.
I do think this loose alliance of authoritarian states.[1] - Russia, Iran, North Korea, etc. - poses some meaningful challenge to democracies, especially insofar as the authoritarian states coordinate to undermine the democratic ones, e.g., through information warfare that increases polarization.
However, I’d emphasize “loose” here, given they share no ideology. That makes them different vs. what binds together the free world [2] or what held together the Cold War’s communist bloc. Such a loose coalition is merely opportunistic and transactional, and likely to dissolve if the opportunity dissipates, i.e., if the U.S. retreats from its role as the global police. Perhaps an apt historical example is how the victors in WWII splintered into NATO and the Warsaw Pact once Nazi Germany was defeated.
Full disclosure: I’ve not (yet) read Applebaum’s Autocracy Inc.
What comes to mind is Kant, et al.’s democratic peace theory.
Thanks Mike. I agree that the alliance is fortunately rather loose in the sense that most of these countries share no ideology. (In fact, some of them should arguably be ideological enemies, e.g., Islamic theocrats in Iran and Maoist communists in China).
But I worry that this alliance is held together by a hatred of (or ressentiment in general) Western secular democratic principles for ideological and (geo-)political reasons. Hatred can be an extremely powerful and unifying force. (Many political/ideological movements are arguably primarily defined, united, and motivated by what they hate, e.g., Nazism by the hatred of Jews, communism by the hatred of capitalists, racists hate other ethnicities, Democrats hate Trump and racists, Republicans hate the woke and communists, etc.)
So I worry that as long as Western democracies to influence international affairs, this alliance will continue to exist. And I certainly hope that Western democracies will continue to be powerful and worry that the world (and the future) will become a worse place if not.