On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Atlantic Charter, the International Coalition for Democratic Renewal resolves to work together to strengthen the transatlantic alliance of democracies and to build stronger democratic solidarity among democracies worldwide. The International Coalition for Democratic Renewal (ICDR) was organized to help coordinate democratic opposition to the rising illiberal and authoritarian forces that have put liberal democracy on the defensive during the past 15 years. We believe that the struggle against these forces can be won—but only if the world’s democracies stand united.
“As we seek to halt and reverse the decline of liberal democracy, revitalizing the transatlantic alliance is essential - and the time to begin is now.“
The Summit for Democracy, which will convene in December, provides an appropriate forum to launch this task and can jump-start the revitalization of democratic cooperation, existing institutions also have a vital role to play.
1) We call on NATO to confront the debilitating disputes that have broken out in the wake of the United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan. Mechanisms of consultation should be updated, and all member-states must rededicate themselves to the proposition that existing unilateral decision-making is inconsistent with an effective and enduring alliance of democracies.
2) We call on the United States and the EU to view lingering trade and regulatory disputes as threats to the fight against autocracy and to address these disputes with urgency. Free trade underpins the historic success and resilience of democracy and fostering free trade among democratic allies, in the Atlantic as well as in the Indo Pacific, should be a long-term goal of democratic governments.
3) We call on democracies on both sides of the Atlantic and around the world to put their own house in order and counter their internal anti-democratic forces with renewed vigor. While policy disputes are the lifeblood of healthy democracies, there should be no debate about the importance of institutions such as a free press, independent judiciaries, and honest elections.
4) We call on all democracies to understand that there is no “Third Way” in the struggle between democracy’s friends and its foes—and that they should resist the temptation of short-term self-interest to break the common democratic front against the world’s leading state sponsors of autocracy.
5) We also call on democratic governments to connect key policy objectives and democracy agenda to the development assistance and provide more support for societies that are fighting against authoritarian regimes.
6) And we urge all Summit for Democracy participants not to let the attention be diverted by matters such as the invitation list and miss this chance to discuss the things that really matter.
International Coalition for Democratic Renewal (ICDR or Coalition) is a Forum 2000 Foundation project, which brings together a global group of intellectuals, activists and politicians concerned with the expansion of power and influence of authoritarian regimes and the simultaneous weakening of democratic systems from within. The ICDR aims to reaffirm the fundamental principles of democracy, to take the offensive against the authoritarian opponents of democracy, and to demonstrate solidarity with the brave people who are fighting for freedom in undemocratic systems around the world.
