Europe stand up for democracy

The author contends that democracy and autocracy are mutually obstructive and that the EU must leverage financial tools like the Global Gateway and the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) to build an alliance of democracies, particularly in the Global South, to prevent a global shift toward authoritarian dominance.

• The author asserts that promoting global democracy is a strategic necessity for Europe, as robust democratic institutions worldwide facilitate more ambitious climate targets and more manageable refugee flows, whereas democratic regression harms the investment environment and global digital regulation.
• The EU's Global Gateway initiative, with a budget of 300 billion euros, is positioned as a response to China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The author argues the EU should avoid copying the Chinese model and instead link investments to transparency, oversight, and the rule of law to engage the Global South in a rules-based order.
• The author criticizes the proposed Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for lacking a fixed percentage of the foreign aid budget earmarked for democratic governance and for reducing thematic programmes that support NGOs in the Global South without requiring national authority approval.
• The document proposes that the EU forge a 'formidable alliance of democracies' by partnering with major economies including India, Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia, and Mexico, as well as 'middle powers' such as Bangladesh and Paraguay.

APA

van der Staak, S. (2026). Europe stand up for democracy. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-stand-up-for-democracy/

Chicago

van der Staak, Sam. Europe stand up for democracy. Green European Journal, 2026. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-stand-up-for-democracy/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=van der Staak |first1=Sam |title=Europe stand up for democracy |publisher=Green European Journal |date=6 January 2026 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-stand-up-for-democracy/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{vanderstaak2026europe, author = {van der Staak, Sam}, title = {{Europe stand up for democracy}}, publisher = {Green European Journal}, year = {2026}, month = jan, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-stand-up-for-democracy/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }