A European Leaders’ Call to Defend Democracy urged the EU to prioritize democracy support in its upcoming institutional term following the European Parliament elections. This call emphasizes the importance of democratic values and proposes several policy commitments. In response, Brussels-based democracy organizations, including EED, EPD, ENOP, and International IDEA, have launched a policy brief detailing specific ideas to operationalize these commitments. The brief outlines 10 proposals for enhancing European support for democracy abroad and 5 for strengthening internal democratic practices. Key suggestions include establishing a Commission for Democracy Support, allocating a minimum of 5% of development assistance to democratic institutions, civil society, human rights, and free media projects including combatting disinformation, updating the EU definition and use of democratic conditionality in a way that clarifies the place of democratic standards in its foreign policy, and integrating democracy support more closely with EU enlargement processes in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Read more here.
Source: European Endowment for Democracy