For perhaps too long, the West has engaged in an intense exercise in empathizing with the decline of liberal democracies. Too much polarization, an excess of contradictions, a dangerous lack of leadership, a defiance of nationalist populism and an overdose of banality have led to all kinds of doubts about the viability of a political system that respects public freedoms and fundamental and fundamental rights. human dignity
Of course, all this grief, anguish, and lamentation over the inexorable democratic decline has been cheered by authoritarian regimes bent on presenting themselves as the path to a better future. Autocrats, no matter what excuse they use to mistreat their people, have always been gifted at presenting the failures of the United States and its allies as conclusive evidence of the exhaustion of the democratic model and its values.
Throughout this complicated year in 2022, good news has followed one another that contradicts misgivings about the decline of Western democracies. for example, Emmanuel Macron He became the first French president to be re-elected since 2002, and has been credited with discrediting Marine Le Pen, which was no easy feat in times of radical rage for a Moliere-quoted liberal centrist who also worked at the bank, the Rothschilds.
Janan Ganesh In the Financial Times he explains how the UK began 2022 with Boris Johnson as prime minister and ended it with Rishi Sunak, a substantive improvement at least in moral terms, including the short-lived Liz Truss debacle. He adds that it was the year Brexit died as an inspirational project. NATO expands, with the accession of Sweden and Finland, and deepens, with an increase in the defense budget by Germany. An economic effort backed by other partners in the Atlantic. And in the United States, voters in the midterm elections punished candidates with the stamp of Donald Trump, complicating the second political career of a former president suspiciously grateful to the Kremlin.
Ayatollah
This “horrible year” of dictators was heroically portrayed at the unscrupulous World Cup in Qatar. The image of the Iranian national team refusing to sing the national anthem because of the way the Tehran regime abuses women was a major lesson in the idolization of corrupt football. Iranians have been demonstrating since last September, protesting the death of 22-year-old Mohsa Amini, who was detained by the morality police in prison on charges of not covering every strand of her hair. Unlike previous protest movements in Iran, the momentum of this uprising does not appear to be waning.
The demonstrators are no longer calling for more handouts or political reform within the regime, but rather the overthrow of the theocracy
This is not the first time that the ayatollah’s regime has faced a popular revolution. Major protests happen in Iran about every ten years, but they are getting more and more angry. The response generated by Amini’s case cannot be compared to its predecessors. The protesters are no longer calling for more grants or political reform within the system, but for The overthrow of theocracy. The anger has lasted longer than before and has spread beyond the middle class and across religious sects and ethnicities.
Despite the deaths of hundreds and more 15,000 arrests, Khamenei’s repressive forces have failed to quell the revolution. “We are no longer a movement,” said a protester at a university in Tehran. We are a revolution that gives birth to a nation.
Xi Jinping
The People’s Republic of China has joined this “horrific year” with unprecedented protests that have spread to all of its major cities over the past three weeks. The failed attempt to extend the harsh regulations against the epidemic that originated in China for a third year broke the agreement proposed by the communist regime of political monopoly in exchange for economic prosperity.
Instead of hearing cries for him to step down, Xi Jinping should enjoy the deification of an unprecedented third term.
Instead of hearing cries for him to step down, Xi Jinping should enjoy the deification of an unprecedented third term. This startling public questioning, and its subsequent correction, raised questions about whether the communist regime in Beijing had reached the peak of its power. The popular response, the demographic problem created by the “one-child” policy, the slowdown in the economy, and the large accumulated financial debt suggest that the alternative of a more socialist, authoritarian China is not as promising as its leaders thought.
Putin and Ukraine
By far the worst – and most dangerous – form of smear belongs to Vladimir Putin. The invasion, which began on February 24, aimed to invade Ukraine in a blitzkrieg, deprive it of its sovereignty, eliminate all opposition, erase its national identity and turn it into a failed state. After months of Western-backed resistance, the national identity of the Ukraine is stronger than ever And Russia risks becoming the country that ends this illegal war of aggression as a failed state.
At the beginning of Putin’s offensive, Russia, as a formidable military player in the Syrian war, was supposed to impose its will on Ukraine with lightning speed. Even the Western intelligence services themselves believed that Zelensky’s government would be beheaded, figuratively and literally, within 48 hours. However, the reality held by corruption ended up imposing itself from the start. Withdrawal after withdrawal, Moscow’s forces publicly demonstrated their lack of experience in joint operations, terrible logistics, lack of naval and air resources, and extremely serious limitations in surveillance and intelligence, not to mention low morale among their ranks.
Putin’s newfound reputation as incapable belies the narrative about the autocrats’ competence
The importance of this notch extends beyond the battlefield. Putin’s new reputation as incapable belies the narrative about the autocrats’ competence. His Western fans are finding it increasingly difficult to satisfy their obsession with the cool tough guy who doesn’t mess with procedure, red tape or the rule of law.
The remainder of these 10 months of war is disastrous for Ukraine, but also for “Russism,” the fascist decline that Putin has promoted in recent years. Russia faces all kinds of open fronts: unmonitored borders, mercenaries acting alone, a people on the run, moral decline, and the potential for civil conflict. And while he is confident in Ukraine’s ability to do so Resist Putin’s terror Compounded with the repulsion of the invasion, there is growing concern about Putin’s Russia’s ability to survive this war.
all of this The battle between liberal democracies and authoritarian regimes It is not limited to who wins and who loses in the dilemma of interests and values. In fact, the importance of this struggle lies in the majority of countries that move between the two models: that “global south” that extends over Asia, Africa and Latin America and that does not support Ukraine’s resistance because it believes it is a rich country. problem. The key is in that vast gray area where authoritarian regimes bolstered by the pandemic are beginning to look less attractive.
