Empty Promises Francis Wade on the Limits of US Democracy Promotion in Myanmar

In 2015, following Myanmar’s first free election in a quarter-century, Western governments, including that of the United States, staked their hopes for democracy on Myanmar’s de facto civilian leader, Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi. Once regarded as a nascent democracy, Myanmar has sharply backslid in recent years. Suu Kyi’s denial of what the United Nations deems a genocide of the country’s Rohingya population coupled with her fall from power in February’s military coup, shows the limits, and perhaps naivety, of Western-backed democracy promotion. 

This week, guest host and former Institute for Global Affairs research fellow Caroline Baxter speaks with journalist Francis Wade. They discuss America’s attempts to curb the humanitarian and political crises in Myanmar, and the options (or lack thereof) confronting the Biden administration.

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This podcast episode includes references to the Eurasia Group Foundation, now known as the Institute for Global Affairs.