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Ukraine’s real-life challenge for democracy
Hanna Hopko and Laura Thornton in the Hill make the case for the importance of Ukraine for democracy globally and the fight against authoritarianism. The authors argue that, "if the entire point of the Summit for Democracy is to protect democracy, Ukraine should be the rallying cry to make good on the commitment." Ukrainian democracy has proved resilient against Russian attempts to destabilise it, resulting in the Kremlin resorting to war. Putin fears democracy at his border, and the invasion attempts to strip Ukraine of its sovereign democracy and to signal to the rest of the world the strength of authoritarianism. The authors contend that democracies must react decisively, using the "most aggressive tools in our arsenal" to isolate Russia.