The transition from authoritarianism to democracy is notoriously difficult, according to Council on Foreign Relations analysts Isobel Coleman and Terra Lawson-Remer. Countries like Egypt, Tunisia and Myanmar should draw on the democratization experience of Poland, Ukraine, Thailand, Indonesia, …

Members of the House of Representatives believe that there is “enough support in Congress to slow, if not halt entirely, economic aid to Egypt” over the conviction of 43 pro-democracy activists, McClatchy reports.

Meanwhile, the ruling Muslim Brotherhood…

Russia’s Justice Ministry says the number of nongovernmental groups required to register as “foreign agents” could ultimately reach about 100, the CSM’s Fred Weir reports from Moscow:

The law, which Russian defenders insist is modeled on the US…

The world’s liberal democracies bear at least indirect responsibility for the challenge emerging from authoritarian or semi-authoritarian states, according to a prominent analyst.

The recent Freedom House report, “Freedom in the World 2013: Democratic Breakthroughs in the Balance,” highlights “a paradoxical situation in which democracy across the globe …

“The Obama administration has waived the conditional human rights string attached to Egypt’s $1.3 billion in U.S. military support for 2013,” Associated Press reports:

In a letter to Congress last month, Secretary of State John Kerry noted the …

A Cairo court’s conviction of 43 employees of pro-democracy non-governmental groups is placing new strains on US-Egyptian relations, as Washington criticized the proceedings as a politically motivated trial that mars Egypt’s transition.

The court’s decision “calls into question the …

“An Egyptian court sentenced at least 15 U.S. citizens in absentia to five years in jail on Tuesday and jailed an American and a German [and an Egyptian and two others whose nationalities were not immediately clear] for two years …

Achieving meaningful policy reform can be a devilishly difficult task in any political system, but especially so in countries with weak traditions of democracy, writes Christopher Walker, introducing a new report, Democracy Think Tanks in Action: Translating Research into Policy …

On May 30, 2013, a High-Level Panel of experts will present recommendations to the U.N. Secretary-General on the global development agenda after the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

“But will the panel take its own jargon seriously and listen to the …

“Democracy promotion is beset by self-doubt” and facing a threat to its credibility in the face of a “democratic disconnect” between citizens and institutions in established democracies, according to a new report.

An insightful and valuable analysis from the German …