FPC Briefing
\nNSC Senior Director for Democracy Rob Berschinski
\nWashington, D.C.
\nWednesday, December 7, 2022, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time<\/p>\n
The\u00a0United States\u00a0will\u00a0co-host the second\u00a0Summit\u00a0for\u00a0Democracy\u00a0on March 29-30 with leaders from Costa Rica,\u00a0the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, and the Republic of Zambia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
In this on-the-record briefing,\u00a0Senior Director\u00a0Berschinski\u00a0discusses the\u00a0\u201cYear of Action\u201d\u00a0following the first\u00a0Summit\u00a0for\u00a0Democracy\u00a0in\u00a0
THE WASHINGTON FOREIGN PRESS CENTER, WASHINGTON, D.C.<\/strong><\/p>\n MODERATOR:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Welcome to the Washington Foreign Press Center\u2019s briefing on the 2023 Summit for Democracy: Progress in the Year of Action.\u00a0 My name is Doris Robinson, and I am the briefing moderator.\u00a0 As a reminder, this briefing is on the record.\u00a0 We will post the transcript later today on the FPC website at fpc.state.gov.<\/p>\n Our distinguished briefer today is NSC Senior Director for Democracy Rob Berschinski.\u00a0 Director Berschinski will start with some opening remarks, and then we will open for questions.\u00a0 And with that, I will turn over to Mr. Berschinski.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Thanks, Doris.\u00a0 Thanks everybody for joining today \u2013 really appreciate you taking the time.\u00a0 As Doris mentioned, I\u2019m the senior director and special assistant to the President at the National Security Council responsible for democracy and human rights.\u00a0 That\u2019s a portfolio that is inclusive of our anti-corruption work, foreign malign influence, information integrity and resilience, technology and democracy issues, transnational repression, and the topic du jour, which is the Summit for Democracy process.\u00a0 I hope everybody saw our announcement on the second Summit in March, but the purpose of this briefing is just to provide a little bit more background on what that announcement was as we really ramp up on our way to March.<\/p>\n So like the first summit back around a year ago \u2013 actually almost exactly a year this week in 2021 \u2013 our intention with the second summit and all of the actions that have come inbetween is to use the platform as a catalyst for change concerning strengthening democracy, standing up for human rights, and fighting corruption.<\/p>\n Our intention with the second meeting is to once again bring together a broad swath of pro-democracy allies and partners from around the world, and that\u2019ll include national-level and subnational leaders from government, leaders from civil society, philanthropic organizations, and the private sector to highlight how all of them are following through on the commitments that we collectively made back in December to strengthen and stand up for democracy both within our own borders, including here within the United States, and in the foreign policy of our government participants.\u00a0 Our intention is to show the many ways that democracies around the world are delivering and developing solutions to all of the world\u2019s most pressing challenges: whether countering aggression, addressing the climate crisis, global health security, or feeding the world.<\/p>\n So as we announced last week, President Biden will be co-hosting the second Summit for Democracy on March 29th and 30th of next year with the leaders of Costa Rica, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, and the Republic of Zambia.\u00a0 And our deliberate intention with this approach of bringing together a regionally diverse group of co-hosts is that it will reinforce with populations around the world the truth that a safer and freer world grounded in democratic values is both a shared aspiration and a shared responsibility globally.<\/p>\n Just by way of format, what we\u2019re planning for the second summit is to assemble world leaders in a virtual plenary format on the 29th, followed by in-person gatherings in each co-host country \u2013 so the United States and the four countries I mentioned previously \u2013 again, with representatives of governments and civil society and the private sector.\u00a0 And we\u2019re also planning a number of meetings that will precede the 29th with additional programming and urging all of our government and non-governmental partners to host events as well.\u00a0 So I think you\u2019re going to see quite a bit of action in the leadup to the formal dates on the 29th and 30th of March.<\/p>\n Our intention is to have summit sessions that focus on many of the key themes that we highlighted last year, but I\u2019ll name just a few \u2013 excuse me \u2013 supporting free and independent media, fighting corruption, bolstering democratic reformers, advancing technology for democracy, and defending free and fair elections and political processes, among others.<\/p>\n We also want to highlight the work of what we\u2019ve been calling Democracy Cohorts.\u00a0 These are multistakeholder thematic groups \u2013 and by multistakeholder, I mean they include both governments and NGOs and, in some cases, corporations that have launched around the world on issues like financial transparency, supporting human rights defenders, countering internet shutdowns, supporting the rights of women and girls.\u00a0 Each of these groups has brought together subsets of our invitees to the Summit for Democracy.\u00a0 They\u2019re doing great work, and we really look forward to using the platform that the summit provides to detail their work and put a positive spotlight on their work.<\/p>\n And of course, we\u2019re going to highlight what the BidenHarris administration has done domestically to deliver for the American people in partnership with the Congress on issues like infrastructure and healthcare and climate and manufacturing and so on.\u00a0 So we at the National Security Council are working very closely with our domestic colleagues in the Domestic Policy Council and the National Economic Council and all of the departments and agencies on the domestic front.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll close by saying that for those who are able to read the National Security Strategy that we released back in October, you saw the administration describe the world as at an inflection point in history with a need for the United States to engage in strategic competition with those who seek to alter the rules-based international order, and at the same time to engage cooperatively with as many nations as possible in tackling pressing and common global challenges \u2013 as with on climate and global health.\u00a0 The Summit for Democracy and the administration\u2019s broader democracy and human rights agenda stands at the center of all of that work, as portrayed in the National Security Strategy.\u00a0 And so we\u2019re really excited for the second gathering.<\/p>\n So with that, Doris, over to you.\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Thank you so much.\u00a0 Thank you for those remarks.\u00a0 We will now start the question-and-answer session.\u00a0 For those in the room, if you have a question, please raise your hand and wait for the microphone.\u00a0 For those on Zoom, you can hit the raise hand icon to ask your question.\u00a0 I will call on you.\u00a0 So let\u2019s start in the room.\u00a0 We\u2019ll start here with Pearl Matibe.<\/p>\n QUESTION:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>I\u2019m Pearl Matibe with Defense Web South Africa.\u00a0 I\u2019m really pleased that you have made yourself available to actually come over here to meet and talk with us.\u00a0 This is a particularly important time one week ahead of the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, and the topic of democracy a key tenant of the strategy documents that you just mentioned.\u00a0 So I appreciate that.\u00a0 I just hope and ask you directly right now that I hope you do more of this, because without this engagement, all the things you\u2019re talking about are \u2013 won\u2019t be sustained long term because journalists are actually the fourth arm of government.\u00a0 So I hope you agree with that.<\/p>\n My question \u2013 I\u2019m glad you mentioned the issue of elections.\u00a0 So may I ask you to help me and my audiences, who are continent-wide across the continent of Africa, thread this needle for me for a minute?\u00a0\u00a0 How do you conceptualize, innovate, and be inclusive of the press beyond just coming to us for reporting purposes?\u00a0 Because you might agree that as you\u2019re trying to strengthen democracy, which is specifically mentioned in the Sub-Saharan Africa Strategy document, and \u2013 for your National Security Strategy, is a core and very basic tenant of democracy.<\/p>\n But we see the corruption is widespread across the continent.\u00a0 We\u2019ve got a Phala Phala corruption case right now going on with President Cyril Ramaphosa in South Africa, the \u2013 many of these leaders, some of them despotic leaders, will be at the table this December.\u00a0 A few months later, you will sit with them, again, you said virtually at the Democracy Summit.\u00a0 So thread this needle for us for the pro-democracy voices on the continent who may not understand how you\u2019re conceptualizing your approach.\u00a0 And these multiple summits \u2013 on a more sort of international relations theoretical aspect \u2013 is this more now your new form of statecraft?\u00a0 Could you speak specifically to statecraft?\u00a0 I\u2019d appreciate that.\u00a0 Thanks.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Sure.\u00a0 I\u2019ll do my best to address various aspects of that.\u00a0 First off, let me associate myself and the U.S. Government with your point on the importance of free and independent media.\u00a0 In addition to all of the diplomatic and programmatic support that the U.S. Government has provided and will continue to provide to media around the world as part of the Summit for Democracy process, we issued a half-billion-dollar \u2013 just shy of half-billion-dollar basket of deliverables.\u00a0 We call it the Presidential Initiative for Democratic Renewal \u2013 and it breaks into five pieces, one of which is fighting corruption, another one of which is supporting free and independent media \u2013 and as part of that have rolled out a number of new programs globally that take on different facets of supporting free and independent media.\u00a0 So this is very much at the heart of everything we\u2019re trying to do because we know how important free media is to democratic societies and, frankly, just to educated societies.<\/p>\n In terms of kind of the through-line between the summits and as they reflect the National Security Strategy and U.S. foreign policy, President \u2013 from President Biden on down, one of the hallmarks of this administration has been re-engaging with the world.\u00a0 Now, we do that in any number of ways; certainly, we do it through these big set-piece, multilateral summits.\u00a0 We\u2019re also doing a tremendous amount of bilateral diplomacy at all times, and we\u2019re engaging through various multilateral organizations like the UN and really have made a concerted effort.\u00a0 And it takes all of that to realize this vision.\u00a0 So there\u2019s a lot of summitry going on, certainly, but I wouldn\u2019t want to portray that our diplomatic activity is limited to that.<\/p>\n Now, there are different memberships, invite lists, between the Summit for Democracy and the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, absolutely.\u00a0 And again, that reflects our overarching foreign policy goals, which are: we are going to build coalitions of partnership with governments around the world to address the world\u2019s most pressing challenges, as I mentioned in my remarks, and that\u2019s what the President hopes to achieve in bringing the leaders of Africa together.<\/p>\n With the Summit for Democracy, our overarching goal is to strengthen democratic processes within our own borders and as part of our foreign policy with like-minded democratic governments, because we realize that democracy is under threat in many different ways \u2013 certainly on the African continent but not only on the African continent, including in the United States and in many countries around the world.\u00a0 There are many reasons and authors for that stress, some of them internal, some of them external.\u00a0 But President Biden puts a premium on having those conversations, and that\u2019s really what\u2019s motivating the Summit for Democracy.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fThank you.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fThanks.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fWe\u2019ll go here and then to Alex.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fAll right, thank you.\u00a0 Michaela Kuefner from Deutsche Welle.\u00a0 I have a follow-up question, really, because what will be your message to African leaders gathered around the table in Washington on what preconditions for also taking a seat at the table of your democracy summit will be?<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fWe have purposefully avoided preconditions.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think it\u2019s the role of the U.S. Government to say to a foreign government, you must do X thing.\u00a0 And we\u2019re not going to be the judge of another country\u202f\u2013 the strength of another country\u2019s democracy.\u00a0 And I say that with all due acknowledgment and humility in terms of the stresses that U.S. democracy has been under in recent years and continues to be under.\u00a0 So this isn\u2019t about demands.\u00a0 We purposefully cast a very wide net with the first Summit for Democracy; we invited over 100 world leaders at many different stages in terms of their history of democratic governance and the strength of their democratic governance.\u00a0 That was very purposeful.<\/p>\n We want to work with anybody who exhibits political will to make progress on any of the key pillars under the summit\u2019s umbrella, and that\u2019s going to take many forms.\u00a0 So that\u2019s really how we\u2019re coming at this with our partners.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fThank you.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go to Alex.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fThank you so much.\u00a0 Alex Raufoglu from Turan News Agency.\u00a0 Great to see you.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fHi, Alex.\u00a0 Good to see you.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fA couple of questions.\u00a0 But you started with the format.\u00a0 I came a little bit late.\u00a0 And my question is: why?\u00a0 Any particular reason why you guys moved it back to next year instead of this December?<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fThe timing?<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fTiming.\u00a0 Secondly, the format, why you got to diversify, why you are co-hosting instead of hosting it.\u00a0 And certainly, why is it virtual and hybrid vis-a-vis in person?\u00a0 That\u2019s what we were expecting for the summit.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fYeah.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fSecond question:\u00a0 Any\u202f\u2013 we all have seen, following the first summit, all the countries, participating countries, were providing ways, let\u2019s say a year of action goals.\u00a0 What is your assessment on the objectives of the first summit, how much you have been able to achieve them?\u00a0 And particularly when you look at my part of the world, South Caucasus and Eastern Europe, did Putin just manage to jeopardize your first year of action?<\/p>\n And lastly, if I may, when we talk about participating countries, we usually talk about two categories, those who were invited, those who were not.\u00a0 I\u2019ll argue there\u2019s another category, those\u202f\u2013 among those who were not invited, you manage to engage with opposition groups, particularly when it comes to Russia, Belarus.\u00a0 Azerbaijan was not part of any of it.\u00a0 So are you planning to diversify this time as well, or what is\u202f\u2013 what is the plan for this year?\u00a0 Thanks so much.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u202f\u202fOkay, that was a comprehensive question.\u00a0 I would\u202f\u2013 I\u2019ll follow up on each part but I would point you to my opening remarks, which covered a little bit, at least, of the answer to the first series of questions.<\/p>\n On timing, I don\u2019t think of us as being late.\u00a0 Yes, last year was in December.\u00a0 This one will be roughly 15 months instead of 12 months.\u00a0 There is no particular rhyme or reason to why that is.\u00a0 As was just mentioned, we are hosting 50-some-odd governments right now.\u00a0 It\u2019s a busy time, and sometimes scheduling is what it is.<\/p>\n In terms of format, I also mentioned in my prepared remarks, we\u2019re really excited with this new co-host model.\u00a0 And the reception that the Summit for Democracy has received\u202f\u2013 that we\u2019ve received about it\u202f\u2013 from our partner governments has been overwhelmingly positive.\u00a0 Every time I travel and in my engagement with the diplomatic corps here, governments are really excited about what they\u2019re doing in terms of follow-up to the work.\u00a0 And that\u2019s reflective of the fact that in countries all over the world, citizens have certain aspirations for how they want to live their lives, and so we felt like a model that incorporated co-host governments would really demonstrate that for audiences around the world.<\/p>\n So we purposefully chose a partner from most regions.\u00a0 It was a difficult choice; there are plenty of great partners to choose from around the world.\u00a0 But we\u2019re really excited with what they\u2019re going to do.\u00a0 And they\u2019re each going to host\u202f\u2013 this is a segue to the last part of your\u202f\u2013 the first part of your question\u202f\u2013 they\u2019re each going to host in-person events.\u00a0 So the second summit, unlike the first, is not going to be fully virtual.\u00a0 The leaders\u2019 plenary will be.\u00a0 Again, dealing with a number of scheduling and logistical considerations, that was the decision that was made.\u00a0 But we don\u2019t underestimate the value of bringing people together in person.\u00a0 And so both in events prior to the 29th and on the 30th, during these co-host events, we\u2019re looking forward to bringing people together.<\/p>\n On achievements from the first summit, I think there are quite a few.\u00a0 I will say at the top that meaningful change in democratic societies takes time.\u00a0 It takes time to pass legislation.\u00a0 It takes time to put in place important regulations, and so on and so forth.\u00a0 So the artificial calendar imposed by a summit needn\u2019t necessarily drive real world change.\u00a0 That said, our partners at the first summit made, by our count, over 700 different commitments, and many of them are following through in multiple ways.\u00a0 And I bring commitments up in my bilateral engagements, the President brings them up in his, the Secretary of State, the National Security Advisor.\u00a0 So we\u2019re having a dialogue and, yes, I think we\u2019re seeing significant process\u202f\u2013 progress, much of which we\u2019ll highlight in March.<\/p>\n On the Russian invasion of Ukraine, obviously the context in which the second summit occurs\u202f\u2013 vastly different than a summit that took place in December of 2021, given that everything is going on.\u00a0 Of course the aggression against Ukraine is going to be a focus of the second summit\u202f\u2013 not the only focus, as I mentioned at the top; stresses on democracies is a global problem and we intend to continue to address it at such \u2013 as such through this process.\u00a0 But no, to answer your question directly, Putin did not jeopardize progress that\u2019s being made, and moreover, through this devastating and unnecessary war, the Ukrainian people are really showing that courage to defend the front lines of freedom lives on.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why we in the U.S. Government and so many around the world are doing so much to support them.<\/p>\n Then lastly, in terms of opposition members, dissidents, activists, yes.\u00a0 Just like in December, we fully intend to incorporate voices from repressive countries, including those whose governments are not invited, and are looking to cast as wide a net as possible and, as I said, have as many events as possible.\u00a0 And so we don\u2019t want to \u2013 we don\u2019t want to preclude anyone\u2019s participation, with the understanding that in this formal summit there are only so many hours in the day; there are so many topics to be covered and so many countries that we need to consider.\u00a0 So we\u2019re looking to have a broad and diverse group.<\/p>\n All right.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you, sir.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Mm-hmm.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 I think we will go online now.\u00a0 We have hands raised there.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go with Jose Diaz from Reforma.\u00a0 Jose, go ahead and unmute yourself.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you so much.\u00a0 I really appreciate it for doing this.\u00a0 The question I have specifically is whether Mexico will be invited to the summit.\u00a0 And given that Mexico is living a crisis of democracy with militarization, the killing of journalists, and the rolling back of the autonomy of the national elections institute, do you think democracy is in peril in Mexico?<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 What I can say is that Mexico is a strong and close democratic partner to the United States.\u00a0 And in terms of invites \u2013 and this goes for invitations to any country \u2013 we haven\u2019t made final decisions on invites at this point.\u00a0 That decision will come and formal invitations will go out to capitals.\u00a0 But I think the expectation is that the invite list to the second summit will look very similar to the ultimate participation list from the first summit.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.\u00a0 We\u2019ll take our next question from Kemi Osukoya from Africa Bazaar.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Hello.\u00a0 Hi.\u00a0 Thank you for taking my question.\u00a0 Can you hear me?<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes, Kemi.\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Okay, thank you very much.\u00a0 I wanted to ask you \u2013 I know with the U.S.-African summit that is coming up next week there\u2019s a session to engage YALI fellows, the young African fellows.\u00a0 And given that the next generation in regards to democracy on the African continent, and also around the world, depend on the next generation, my question is:\u00a0 How do you plan to engage between now and during that summit next year?\u00a0 Do you plan to bringing the youth to prepare them for leadership, democracy, moving forward?<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes, absolutely.\u00a0 We completely agree that engaging young people around the world is really the future to democracy for all the obvious reasons, and are looking forward to having the youth event, the YALI event, at the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit.\u00a0 I was part of the Obama administration at the point at which YALI and some parallel programs were set up, and we see clearly what dividends they pay.\u00a0 So we\u2019re really looking forward to that aspect of the summit.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll say with regard to the Summit for Democracy, we haven\u2019t made final decisions around the agenda.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s safe to say that there will be multiple components that in different ways engage youth, and over the course of what we\u2019ve been calling the year of action, the interval between the first summit and the second summit, we\u2019ve gone out of our way to engage civil society broadly, but that includes engaging young people around the world.\u00a0 Our embassies in countries across the globe have done various events under the umbrella of the Summit for Democracy.\u00a0 They\u2019ve looked a little different in different places, but our guidance here from Washington is, of course, to engage young people as a matter of course and also in direct correspondence with the summit process.\u00a0 So absolutely.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 We\u2019ll go back to the room.\u00a0 We\u2019ll go to the gentleman in the \u2014<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.\u00a0 I\u2019m Ryohei Takagi from Kyodo News, Japan\u2019s news agency.\u00a0 Thanks for the briefing.\u00a0 My question is:\u00a0 There \u2013 there is a criticism that the Summit for Democracy might divide nations into the two categories, right \u2013 democratic state, and authoritarian states.\u00a0 And I guess there are a bunch of countries in between, so \u2013 we understand, though, the United States is not asking the nations to choose between China or \u2013 and the United States.\u00a0 But how is your react to that criticism?\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\u00a0 As you said, we are not asking anyone to choose sides.\u00a0 That\u2019s not our intention.\u00a0 That said, as I mentioned, the data is pretty overwhelming that over the course of the last 15 years, give or take, the quality of democratic governance around the world has declined.\u00a0 That is true, as I\u2019ve mentioned, in the United States, among many countries around the world.\u00a0 And again, there are many factors \u2013 the rise of certain populist and illiberal leaders within democracies, the influence of authoritarian states on democracies, the impact of technology and frankly threats to journalists.\u00a0 All of this has had this detrimental effect on democracies.<\/p>\n President Biden feels very strongly that that is a threat to global peace and security, and the livelihoods of the American people and people around the world.\u00a0 And that\u2019s really what the Summit for Democracy is all about.\u00a0 It\u2019s not about dividing the world into camps.\u00a0 This gets back to the question around: \u201cAre we demanding something of our participants?\u201d\u00a0 We absolutely are not.\u00a0 We are engaging them in a dialogue about how we all live up to the aspirations that we hold dear.\u00a0 That\u2019s really at the core of our message.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go here, and then we\u2019ll go to Pearl.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 My name is Miya Tanaka, also from Japan\u2019s Kyodo News.\u00a0 I would also \u2013 I would like to follow up on the invite list.\u00a0 You said it will be very similar to the participation list of the first one, but do you expect Taiwan to join?\u00a0 And are there any concerns that Taiwan\u2019s participation will become a source of tension between U.S. and China at a time when the two countries are trying to manage their competition?<\/p>\n And if I may, I have another question.\u00a0 What happens after the second summit?\u00a0 Are there any plans to hold another one?\u00a0 And how do you ensure that the commitments made at the second summit will be properly followed through after the second summit?\u00a0 Thank you.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 So on Taiwan, we were proud to have their involvement in the first summit, which is reflective of the democratic resilience of the Taiwanese people.\u00a0 And I would just refer you back to my earlier comments in terms of no final decisions being made on invites, but also in all likelihood no major changes either.\u00a0 And more broadly, Taiwan\u2019s participation in the summit process is completely in keeping with existing U.S. policy with respect to the \u201cone China\u201d policy, and there have been no changes in that regard.<\/p>\n On this \u2013 the third summit, or the potential for a third summit, we also haven\u2019t made a decision yet.\u00a0 We are starting to field questions along these lines from many of our partners.\u00a0 It\u2019s a good question to be asking, and one that we\u2019ll look forward to answering soon.\u00a0 But of course we recognize that the work, as I mentioned earlier, to meaningfully improve our democratic governance structures takes time.\u00a0 It takes lifetimes.\u00a0 So we very much hope that aspects of the summit process will continue beyond March.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.\u00a0 We\u2019ll go back to Pearl.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 I appreciate you taking a follow-up question, because I\u2019m listening to everything that you\u2019re saying and thankful for this interchange.\u00a0 So this is one question, but it\u2019s a three-part question.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Okay.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 And the top part of that question begins on the issue of defense, national security issues.\u00a0 So for governments to thrive and for democracy to be sustained long-term, with the instability which is proliferating particularly on the African continent, how do you link democracy to stability and instability?\u00a0 What are those things that you think might need to be worked on, and are you constructing your agenda with that in mind?<\/p>\n On elections.\u00a0 Certainly on the African continent we\u2019ve got a number of elections after March \u2013 actually in Nigeria, before March.\u00a0 But after March you\u2019ve got Sierra Leone, for example; Benin, for example; Zimbabwe, for example, will be having its elections.\u00a0 And there\u2019s always been this talk of how Western countries, including the United States, has come to observe elections to find out whether they are free, fair, and credible.\u00a0 The United States did invite an organization to be an observer in your midterms.\u00a0 To what extent might you include, for example, members of the press to be part of an observation mission to observe your own elections?\u00a0 So I\u2019d like you to talk about elections specifically \u2013<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Can I just pause you there, make sure I understand?\u00a0 The question is inviting members of the press into an observation mission?<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yeah, if other countries are inviting the United States to observe their elections, can you be more expansive in who you include in your invitations to observe your own elections?\u00a0 You\u2019ve got an election yourself coming up in 2024, right.\u00a0 And to what extent might you include people who do hold America to account, like us journalists?<\/p>\n And then part C to my question is I do want to press you on the issue of media.\u00a0 This is an \u2013 a particularly important issue, and I hear you saying that you have not completed constructing or building your agenda.\u00a0 Could you take a message back to President Biden and ask him: why can you not commit to having an actual media forum?\u00a0 You\u2019ve been having civil society forums, you\u2019ve been having diaspora forums, youth forums, but the fourth estate, I do not see that in any of your forums where you have us at the table other than saying we\u2019re coming to briefings and reporting.\u00a0 That\u2019s neither here nor there, but if we in our work are trying to articulate to our audiences to help them understand America, I think mass communication and a public diplomacy element, you should \u2013 I wonder if you would agree with me there that plays a really critical role in explaining to the world exactly your motivations and your foreign policy conduct.\u00a0 But can you take this message back, please, to President Biden?\u00a0 Could you commit to that?<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Great.\u00a0 Great.\u00a0 So taking those in turn, on the links between democratic governance and stability, I mean, look, I work at the National Security Council, not the national human rights council.\u00a0 We think of democracy and human rights as integral to long-term stability and prosperity.\u00a0 I would again refer you to how we describe it in the recent National Security Strategy, but it\u2019s at the very heart of how we think about these issues.\u00a0 The world is a complex place.\u00a0 We have to take each issue uniquely in turn.\u00a0 It\u2019s going to look different in different environments, but at the end of the day we are striving to incorporate the work that I coordinate on a day-to-day basis, but in partnership with all of my colleagues across the National Security Council, as we work on peace and security issues.<\/p>\n On elections, we\u2019re very, very focused on the issue in terms of elections globally, but also on the African continent.\u00a0 It\u2019s going to feature pretty prominently in the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, as you probably know.<\/p>\n On the question of observers, that\u2019s an interesting one.\u00a0 I\u2019m glad you highlighted that the U.S. Government wants to be seen as not asking of anyone else what we ourselves will not sign up to, and so we think that electoral observation in our domestic elections is important, though on the \u2013 I can\u2019t answer the precise question you posed on inclusion of members of the press simply because I don\u2019t work on domestic policy issues.\u00a0 But I\u2019m happy to take that back to my colleagues who do.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s a worthwhile idea to bounce around.<\/p>\n And then on media inclusion in the second summit, first off, absolutely, as you referenced, we are thinking about what the agenda will look like.\u00a0 There is no doubt that media freedom issues are and will be prominent on the agenda, and as should be always the case, we are not going to talk about the issue without including in that conversation the people that are actually engaged in this work on a day-to-day basis.\u00a0 So whether it takes the form of a dedicated media forum, which is a good idea, I think, or some other form or forms still remains to be seen, but the answer in general is yes.<\/p>\n And I\u2019ll just mention that, as I think about the various pieces of the first Summit for Democracy, as I recall we engaged a number of members of the journalistic community in different ways \u2013 not just those reporting on the summit itself but actually as participants.\u00a0 And we look to double down on that work for the second summit.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you.\u00a0 We have time for one final question, and we\u2019ll go to Alex.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 All right.\u00a0 Is it another four-parter?<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Just one quick \u2013 not that I compete with Pearl; I can\u2019t.\u00a0 (Laughter.)\u00a0 It is democracy here.\u00a0 (Laughter.)\u00a0 Just to make sure we\u2019re on the same page, when you said no final decision was made, also you said but at least won\u2019t be different than the first summit.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Can I just pause you there and clarify?<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yeah.\u00a0 Yeah, sure.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 So no final decision has been made.\u00a0 That should mean exactly what it says.\u00a0 Changes very well could be made.\u00a0 The second part is, in broad strokes, as I said before, we cast a very wide net.\u00a0 We invited over 100 government leaders.\u00a0 There should be no expectation that that magnitude is different.\u00a0 You\u2019re not going to see a second summit that is 25 world leaders or all 192 or whatever the number is.\u00a0 So it\u2019s going to be essentially the same size.\u00a0 Some changes may be made, but that decision hasn\u2019t been made.<\/p>\n QUESTION:<\/strong>\u00a0 Makes perfect sense, but just to be precise, is there still a room for countries such as Central Asian countries \u2013 Turkey, Azerbaijan \u2013 still to join the math?\u00a0 And if so, what factors you could number that will play into your decision-making process between now and the summit?\u00a0 Thanks so much.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yeah, that\u2019s a very good question.\u00a0 The message we gave all of our partners, including those who were invited to the first summit, after it occurred, was what we want to see is active participation under the themes that the summit covers: strengthening democracy wherever you are on the spectrum of lived reality in terms of your governing structure, protecting human rights, doing more to fight corruption.\u00a0 That\u2019s true of those we invited; it\u2019s true of those we didn\u2019t.\u00a0 And we have cast a very wide net and we sent the message to those that weren\u2019t invited that we have an open-door policy.\u00a0 If you can demonstrate progress, at the end of the day, President Biden wants everyone in the room.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not the same thing as making specific demands, and we did not make them.\u00a0 There wasn\u2019t a checklist.\u00a0 But we did make clear that we want to enter into a dialogue and that, at the end of the day, our goal is to have everyone there if there\u2019s demonstrated political will.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 And I will throw it back to Rob for any closing remarks.<\/p>\n MR BERSCHINSKI:<\/strong>\u00a0 No, I don\u2019t have anything in closing.\u00a0 Just want to say thank you again for taking the time.\u00a0 I\u2019m looking forward to engaging more often in the run-up to March, and hope you all will be covering the event, and really appreciate the questions and the suggestions.\u00a0 So thank you.<\/p>\n MODERATOR:<\/strong>\u00a0 Thank you so much for taking the time to brief with us today.\u00a0 Thank you to the journalists for participating.\u00a0 This concludes today\u2019s briefing.<\/p>\n CLICK HERE to submit your press release to MyPR.co.za International\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n 2023 Summit for Democracy: Progress in the Year of Action Submission Details<\/strong><\/p>\n Author<\/strong>: Africa Media from . <\/p>\n Have a look at the online visibility from 03\/23\/2023 to today for 2023 Summit for Democracy: Progress in the Year of Action<\/strong>:<\/strong><\/p>\n Hint:<\/strong> Registering on MyPR<\/a> and ensuring that you are logged in when submitting your press release will seamlessly place your releases under your Author Name. 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