How Putin’s assault on Ukraine impacts Poland’s democratic backsliding The Russian invasion of Ukraine has had a dramatic impact on Poland’s international position as well as domestic political developments. Poland’s political class as well as the wider public recognized that this war is not just about the future of Ukraine but a direct threat to Poland’s security. The country’s position as a ‘frontline state’ put it in the …
One central concept of contemporary social and political science is that of accountability. The presupposition that popular sovereignty requires that rulers be accountable to the people is a universal tenet of democratic theory. There is less agreement, however, on how to produce governmental accountability. As processes of democratic consolidation unfolded in the third-wave democracies, a liberal model of accountability as limited government gained ground, as many analysts called …
In 2018, most Brazilian citizens decided to live under a government that daily weakens our democracy and attacks its institutions, instilling terror in part of Brazilian society. By electing Jair Bolsonaro, we elect someone who not only openly defends the military dictatorship of 1964 but defends it in its worst aspects: the practice of torture, silencing, and murder of critics and opponents. Jair Bolsonaro is not merely a …
Putin and the Dictator’s Playbook Chinese leader Xi Jinping asserted at the outset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine that “China always respects all countries’ sovereignty and territorial integrity.” Some political commentators interpret the statement as Chinese support for respecting national borders, including that of Ukraine, limiting China’s ability to support Russia’s invasion. However, this may be a misinterpretation of Xi’s meaning, particularly as he does not actually …
Paweł Pieniążek from Kyiv – 03/10/2022. Originally published in Tygodnik Powszechny. The authorities, led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, are constantly appealing to NATO countries to introduce a no-fly zone over Ukraine. The Kyiv-Classic Symphony Orchestra started its concert at Independence Square in Kyiv with the national anthem of Ukraine. There were up to seventy performers in the orchestra until the outbreak of war but about a third played …
Paweł Pieniążek form Kyiv – 03/07/2022. Originally published in Tygodnik Powszechny. PAWEŁ PIENIĄŻEK FROM KYIV | Thanks to his tenacity and his will to stay and defend his country, Volodymyr Zelenskyyy has become the most popular leader in the history of independent Ukraine. On the tenth day of the Russian invasion, 38-year-old Kristina Berdynskykh finally visited her home. She decided to take some supplies that she had left …
Paweł Pieniążek form Kyiv – 03/05/2022. Originally published in Tygodnik Powszechny. PAWEŁ PIENIĄŻEK FROM UKRAINE | Irpin, a city in the suburbs of Kyiv, is cut off from the rest of the world. An evacuation is underway. The choices are: one road, one train or crossing a broken bridge. People have been crowding the entrances to the train station platforms for the past two hours. They are trying …
Paweł Pieniążek form Kyiv – 03/02/2022. Originally published in Tygodnik Powszechny. DISPATCH FROM UKRAINE | The trains are still running, there has been no information about casualties. Kateryna, Nina and Nora are safe on the train to Lviv. From there they will go to Warsaw. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion the railway station in Kyiv has been exceptionally crowded. There are families with children, couples, and …
Paweł Pieniążek from Kyiv – 03/06/2022. Originally published in Tygodnik Powszechny. PAWEŁ PIENIĄŻEK FROM KYIV | The Ukrainian capital prepares for a Russian attack. Everyone helps to the best of their abilities. Some go fight, others take care of supplies, build barricades and fill bottles with gasoline. Thirty-six-year-old sculptor Volodymyr Zurawel sits outside welding pieces of metal. In Kyiv, his monuments decorate the Kyiv-Zhuliany airport, Poshtova square, Muromets …
Autocratic Russia’s invasion of democratic Ukraine raises many questions about Taiwan, whose independence is also under existential threat from its larger and more powerful neighbor. Neither Russia nor China sees Ukraine and Taiwan, respectively, as independent states. China thinks it is completely consistent that it: (a) “respects and safeguards the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries” including Ukraine, while (b) considering Taiwan a mere province and an …
