The Summit for Democracy is a diplomatic initiative of the Biden administration which seeks to bring government, civil society, and private sector leaders together from all corners of the democratic world. The overall goal of the summit – which will be held virtually on December 9^th and 10^th – is to renew and strengthen global democracy. More specifically, this entails three objectives: 1) defending against authoritarianism; 2) fighting corruption; and 3) promoting respect for human rights.

Though the State Department backgrounder notes that the United States will be present to “listen, learn, and engage with a diverse range of actors whose support and commitment is critical for global democratic renewal,” there are, as always, geopolitical considerations underpinning the summit, much of which stem from the Biden administration’s long-held desire to shore up solidarity within the democratic world against creeping authoritarianism. Indeed, the idea of a democracy summit was first raised by Biden on the campaign trail as a way to mend relationships with conventional US allies following the trade- and security-related upheavals of the Trump administration.