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About Democracy Lab

Democracy Lab is Foreign Policy's home for coverage of transitions to democracy, published in partnership with the Legatum Institute. Democracy Lab also runs Transitions, a blog featuring on-the-ground coverage of transitioning countries.

Editor, Christian Caryl
Assistant Editor, Ilya Lozovsky

Learn more about Democracy Lab here.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 20.
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 20.

Putin and Xi Meet

Meanwhile, Kishida and Modi meet in India.

Rep. Mike Gallagher presides over the first hearing of the U.S. House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party in Washington on Feb. 28.
Rep. Mike Gallagher presides over the first hearing of the U.S. House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party in Washington on Feb. 28.

The Real Risk of the China Select Committee

Why alienate the very people whose expertise and connections might help Congress understand the Chinese government?

Norwegian Home Guard soldiers assist security at Norway’s Karsto gas processing plant.
Norwegian Home Guard soldiers assist security at Norway’s Karsto gas processing plant.

Insurance Agencies Would Love to Know Who Blew Up Nord Stream

An era of gray zone warfare and sabotage creates tough financial questions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks with apartment block residents in Mariupol, Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks with apartment block residents in Mariupol, Ukraine.

Russia Extends Grain Deal With Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Mariupol, Ukraine, for the first time since announcing Russia’s annexation of the Donbas.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte speaks to the press in The Hague, the Netherlands.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte speaks to the press in The Hague, the Netherlands.

The Netherlands’ Eternal Prime Minister Survives Another Populist Wave

Dutch parties keep changing, but the politics remain the same.

Then-Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda attends a central bank symposium.
Then-Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda attends a central bank symposium.

Japan Has Raised Inflation but Can’t Shake Stagnation

Top banking chief Haruhiko Kuroda is leaving with his work half done.

Supporters carry placards displaying a portrait of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan during a protest in Karachi.
Supporters carry placards displaying a portrait of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan during a protest in Karachi.

A Coup Would Put Pakistan Squarely in China’s Bloc

An isolated junta would be cripplingly dependent on Beijing.

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
A COMAC C919 narrow-body airliner on display during the 2021 China Aviation Industry Conference And Nanchang Air Show on October 30, 2021 in Nanchang, China.
A COMAC C919 narrow-body airliner on display during the 2021 China Aviation Industry Conference And Nanchang Air Show on October 30, 2021 in Nanchang, China.
Retired Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove (R), former NATO supreme allied commander Europe and former commander of the U.S. European Command, testifies at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the U.S.-Russian relationship in Washington, D.C.
Retired Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove (R), former NATO supreme allied commander Europe and former commander of the U.S. European Command, testifies at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the U.S.-Russian relationship in Washington, D.C.
Young men walk in front of a billboard promoting Russian army service.
Young men walk in front of a billboard promoting Russian army service.
Members of the transgender and LGBTQ community light candles as they  pay tribute to victims of hate crimes in Uganda and all over the world, in Kampala, Uganda, on Nov. 23, 2019.
Members of the transgender and LGBTQ community light candles as they pay tribute to victims of hate crimes in Uganda and all over the world, in Kampala, Uganda, on Nov. 23, 2019.
A Likud Party election banner hanging from a building shows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shaking hands with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a caption above reading in Hebrew "Netanyahu, in another league", in  Tel Aviv on July 28, 2019.
A Likud Party election banner hanging from a building shows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shaking hands with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a caption above reading in Hebrew "Netanyahu, in another league", in Tel Aviv on July 28, 2019.
French soldiers deployed in the Central African Republic board a cargo plane to leave the Bangui airport.
French soldiers deployed in the Central African Republic board a cargo plane to leave the Bangui airport.
An aerial view shows ships at the anchorage area of the Bosphorus southern entrance in Istanbul.
An aerial view shows ships at the anchorage area of the Bosphorus southern entrance in Istanbul.
People protest Russian war crimes in Ukraine while in Vienna.
People protest Russian war crimes in Ukraine while in Vienna.
Chief Rabbi of Russia Berel Lazar attends a ceremony marking the International Holocaust Victims Remembrance Day at the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Centre in Moscow on Jan. 27, 2023.
Chief Rabbi of Russia Berel Lazar attends a ceremony marking the International Holocaust Victims Remembrance Day at the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Centre in Moscow on Jan. 27, 2023.
Iraqi children walk along a damaged road on their way back from school in Mosul, Iraq
Iraqi children walk along a damaged road on their way back from school in Mosul, Iraq
People vote in Dutch provincial elections.
People vote in Dutch provincial elections.

Galleries

Protesters—many of them armed—try to enter the Michigan House of Representatives chamber and are stopped by state police during a protest April 30 demanding that businesses be reopened. An “American Patriot Rally” organized by Michigan United for Liberty was held earlier in the day on the steps of the state Capitol in Lansing. JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images
Protesters—many of them armed—try to enter the Michigan House of Representatives chamber and are stopped by state police during a protest April 30 demanding that businesses be reopened. An “American Patriot Rally” organized by Michigan United for Liberty was held earlier in the day on the steps of the state Capitol in Lansing. JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images

The Week in World Photos

Global protests against government-imposed lockdowns, gang violence in El Salvador, and hat tips to medical staff.

Muslims offer prayers on April 23, the first night of Ramadan, in Bireuen, Indonesia. AMANDA JUFRIAN/AFP via Getty Images
Muslims offer prayers on April 23, the first night of Ramadan, in Bireuen, Indonesia. AMANDA JUFRIAN/AFP via Getty Images

The Week in World Photos

A prayerful start to Ramadan, medical workers on the front lines of a pandemic, and the annual Lyrids meteor shower.

In the Magazine

In the Magazine

foreign-policy-magazine-cover-coronavirus-globalization-spring-2020
foreign-policy-magazine-cover-coronavirus-globalization-spring-2020
deglobalization-localization-lego-globe-ben-fearnley
deglobalization-localization-lego-globe-ben-fearnley

How to Save Global Capitalism From Itself

Decentralizing decision-making can help left-behind regions get back on track.

brexit-deglobalization-brian-stauffer-illustration
brexit-deglobalization-brian-stauffer-illustration

Britain’s Post-Brexit Identity Crisis

Boris Johnson has contradictory ideas for his country’s future—and no clear paths for getting there.

The Ugly End of Chimerica

The coronavirus pandemic has turned a conscious uncoupling into a messy breakup.

The 3 Most Polarizing Words in India

“Jai Shri Ram” was meant to be a celebration of a Hindu deity. But the phrase is turning into hate speech—and a dog whistle for attacks on Muslims.

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China, Ukraine, and How Biden Plans to Balance Both

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Can U.S. President Joe Biden really support Ukraine against Russia for “as long as it takes,” as he has pledged? Congressional support for this aid has largely been bipartisan and wide-r...Show more

Protesters gather during a rally against the government's controversial judicial overhaul bill in Tel Aviv on March 18.
Protesters gather during a rally against the government's controversial judicial overhaul bill in Tel Aviv on March 18.

Ehud Barak on Israel’s Escalating Crisis

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Hundreds of thousands of Israelis have been protesting weekly against their government’s plans to overhaul—and weaken—the country’s judiciary. Several former military officials have ...Show more

BEIJING, CHINA - MARCH 05: A general view of the Great Hall of the People during the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers a speech in the opening of the first session of the 14th National People's Congress at The Great Hall of People on March 5, 2023 in Beijing, China.China's annual political gathering known as the Two Sessions will convene leaders and lawmakers to set the government's agenda for domestic economic and social development for the year. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
BEIJING, CHINA - MARCH 05: A general view of the Great Hall of the People during the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers a speech in the opening of the first session of the 14th National People's Congress at The Great Hall of People on March 5, 2023 in Beijing, China.China's annual political gathering known as the Two Sessions will convene leaders and lawmakers to set the government's agenda for domestic economic and social development for the year. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

Inside China’s ‘Two Sessions’

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Every year, the top Chinese legislative and advisory bodies meet for two weeks to rubber-stamp decisions already made by the Chinese Communist Party. It’s called the “two sessions,” ...Show more