Democracy defined as the government by the people for the people. The preference towards democracy has been associated with economic growth and development. Since the destruction of the Berlin Wall, capitalism and former communist societies have tried to allow democracy in the countries, but the success story is not equal in all states. The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has for the last decade depicted the progress of every country in embracing freedoms and economic growth based on the form of leadership. The EIU divides forms of governance into four main categories, full democracy, flawed democracies, hybrid regime, and authoritarian forms of governance. The rating under the groups is dependent on the ability of the country to enhance electoral process and pluralism, political culture, civil liberties, political participation and functioning of the government (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2018). The annual results help demonstrate the decline or progress in by governments in 167 nations in the bid to achieve to improve their governance.
Comparison
According to EIU (2018) report on how the global democracy fared in 2017, the U.S. was termed as rated as a flawed democracy and occupies number 21 after failing to average a rating of higher than 8% in the five categories. Russia, on the other hand, was termed as an authoritarian regime and was number 135 of the 167 nations because it achieved an average of 3.17 in the five categories (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2018). The EIU rankings and ratings are testaments that unlike in the U.S. whereby five essential elements are highly valued, the Russian government is skeptical in enhancing the freedoms for the civil movements. Failures in engaging in free and fair elections based on the political culture that is dependent on an authoritative leader to make all the decisions and silence freedom of speech.
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President Putin is an influential figure in the governance and structure of Russian political landscape and has used his power to suppress strong political rivals and limiting the freedom of the media when they tend to analyze the corruption in the government and other social evils. Civil liberties are restricted in the former Soviet region with their continuous use of power and police brutality to civil activists making it clear that the country is opposed to improving democracy (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2018). In the previous years, Russia was rated as a hybrid regime, but with the excessive force and suppression of civil liberties, the country has declined to the lowest level regarding democracy.
The decline in the democracy is the only similarity between the two countries. America since its independence is depicted as a core figure in democracy. However, it has dropped its ranking in the democracy ranking from full democracy to flawed democracy. The low turnout during elections and the over 50% loss of faith in the government have demonstrated that the functioning of the government is below the expectations of the Americans and the world at large (Chandran, 2017). The rise to power by President Trump has also reduced the attractiveness of America in the global community. However, freedom of civil liberties and exercising free and fair elections that are based on the firm constitution and republic strength ensures that for all the decline in democracy ratings, U.S. is still a key figure of democracy.
International Business
Sanctions are some of the shortcomings of having an authoritarian government. The U.S. has a stronger international business compared to Russia. According to studies depicting the best places to do businesses in, U.S. is ranked eighth whereas Russia occupies number fifty-nine. Unlike the U.S. which is expected to be two spots higher from 2014 to 2018 for business, Russia is expected to fall one position in the same period (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2014). The surveys indicate that democracy plays a crucial role in building trust and expanding international trade. The association of U.S. with strong and democratic countries makes it second in international business whereas Russia association with the likes of North Korea and other authoritarian regimes makes it unattractive to most states.
References
Chandran, N. (2017, Jan 25). US is no longer a full democracy, EIU warns. CNBC . Retrieved March 21, 2018, from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/25/us-is-no-longer-a-full-democracy-eiu-warns.html
The Economist Intelligence Unit, (2014). Business Environment Rankings Which country is best to do business in? Iberglobal.com . Retrieved March 21, 2018, from http://www.iberglobal.com/files/business_climate_eiu.pdf
The Economist Intelligence Unit, (2018). Democracy Index 2017 Free speech under attack. Eiu.com . Retrieved March 21, 2018, from http://pages.eiu.com/rs/753-RIQ-438/images/Democracy_Index_2017.pdf
