NATO Summit Side Event: Strengthening Security Through Democratic Resilience
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2024. Created as the only political-military alliance in the world based upon democratic values, NATO inherently recognizes the strong nexus between democracy and security as highlighted in the NATO 2022 Strategic Concept. This commitment will only grow in importance as a more conflictive and unstable geopolitical world order emerges amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, global trends toward democratic backsliding and rising authoritarianism, and the growth of disruptive technologies. This year’s NATO Summit in Washington, D.C., on July 9-11 provides an opportunity to explore how these and other emerging issues will affect democratic resilience within the transatlantic alliance.
On July 9, USIP and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance hosted a virtual NATO Summit side event that aimed to bring together and convene experts in the fields of transatlantic relations and democratic resilience to discuss the increasingly important nexus between democracy and security. The conversation also explored the evolving plans of the Centre for Democratic Resilience at NATO.
Speakers
Ambassador William B. Taylor, welcoming remarks
Vice President, Russia and Europe Center, U.S. Institute of Peace
Annika Silva-Leander, Ph.D., introductory remarks
Head of North America and Permanent Observer to the U.N., International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), keynote remarks
U.S. Representative for Virginia’s 11th Congressional District.
Panelists
Léonie Allard
Visiting Fellow, Europe Center, Atlantic Council
Joseph Brinker
Policy Fellow, Democratic Resilience, NATO Parliamentary Assembly
Patrick Quirk, Ph.D.
Vice President for Strategy, Innovation, and Impact, International Republican Institute; Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center
David Salvo
Managing Director, Alliance for Securing Democracy, German Marshall Fund
Calin Trenkov-Wermuth, Ph.D., moderator
Security Governance Advisor, U.S. Institute of Peace
Johan Frisell, closing remarks
Deputy Director-General and Head of Department for Security Policy, Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs
