Brightening skies for the world’s democracies

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/12/2022 (726 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The world is a much friendlier place today for middle-sized democracies such as Canada than it was at the end of 2021.

A year ago, democratic practice appeared to be under threat and the sovereign independence of middle-sized countries looked fragile and uncertain. Former U.S. president Donald Trump had tried and failed to overthrow the rule that a democratic government, having lost an election, must step aside and let the winner take power.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin was about to try (and fail) to seize neighbouring Ukraine by military force.

Had either man succeeded, Canada would have been in deep trouble. This country cannot defend its territory against attack by a superpower. It survives only because the countries of the world agree that unprovoked aggression is illegal and intolerable.

The member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, with moral support from the United Nations General Assembly, applied sufficient muscle in support of Ukraine to prevent a swift Russian victory. Because Ukraine still stands, Canada’s future seems more secure.

Canadians, like people in other democracies, can change their governments by means of elections. All Canadian political parties agree a government defeated in an election has to step aside and let the winner take power. Mr. Trump tried to survive electoral defeat simply by claiming electoral fraud and sending a violent mob to intimidate the authorities.

If he had succeeded, then defeated governments in Canada and around the world would have been emboldened to try to do the same. So much for peaceful succession. So much for democracy. Because Mr. Trump failed, Canadians can still choose their governments.

Mr. Trump’s failure was complete. Despite his court manoeuvres and his resort to mob violence, the election results were upheld and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden assumed office. Mr. Trump continued — and continues — to fulminate, but he never again saw the inside of the White House.

In the November midterm elections, the American public disregarded his endorsements. He still has a following, but not enough to win an election.

Mr. Putin’s failure is not yet complete: he still has troops on the ground in Ukraine. His army has, however, proved to be no match for the highly motivated Ukrainian troops, who are defending their homeland.

The Russian leader is counting on conscripts he drafted into the army earlier this year to complete their training and reinforce his demoralized and retreating forces in Ukraine. There is, however, little reason to expect these conscripts will show more enthusiasm for the war than the troops who have already evacuated Kherson and retreated east of the Dnipro River.

Meanwhile, Mr. Putin is earning Ukrainians’ hatred and the world’s contempt by shelling and bombing power lines and other civilian targets. These attacks bring him no closer to defeating the Ukrainian army, but they solidify the determination of Ukrainians and their allies to repel the Russian invaders as soon as possible. Mr. Putin is prolonging his own agony.

Mr. Trump failed because U.S. judges and election authorities stood their ground and rejected his baseless claims of election fraud. Mr. Putin has so far failed because Ukraine’s government and people showed exceptional courage and resolve. Their allies found ways to support them without making war on Russia.

The year 2022 should be remembered as a year when the enemies of democracy in the U.S. were stymied, the enemies of international peace in Moscow were fought to a standstill, and Canada, with other democracies, watched the storm clouds pass and the skies grow brighter.