Former Foreign Ministers warn of rising democratic erosion at Atlantic Dialogues

Former foreign ministers from Latin America, West Africa and Europe warned Thursday that democracies across their regions are losing public trust as political systems struggle to meet rising social and economic demands.

Speaking on the opening day of the Atlantic Dialogues, the panel, moderated by Uduak Amimo, founder of Uduak Amimo Coaching & Consulting, examined the drivers behind the erosion of democratic confidence and what could help reverse the trend.

Jorge Castañeda, Mexico’s former foreign minister, said Latin America is facing sharp democratic backsliding. He cited the attempted coup in Brazil, entrenched authoritarian rule in Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, and what he called growing illiberal tendencies in other countries.

Castañeda said many citizens linked democracy to economic progress, expectations that went unmet for large parts of the population. That disappointment, he added, is propelling support for strongman leaders across the region. He also warned that international pressure previously used to defend democratic norms has weakened, noting that Washington “no longer sees defending democracy abroad as a priority.”

From West Africa, Suzi Barbosa, former foreign minister of Guinea-Bissau, described a region grappling with recurring coups because political models imported from abroad failed to take root locally. She noted her own country faced another coup attempt this week.

Barbosa said democracy remains the strongest option, but only if it is reshaped to respond to the needs of overwhelmingly young populations. With many citizens relying on social media as their only platform to be heard, she said misinformation threatens people’s ability to distinguish facts from falsehoods. Restoring trust, she argued, requires “concrete action,” not rhetoric.

Italy’s former prime minister Paolo Gentiloni said Europe is more stable but not immune to the same forces undermining trust elsewhere. He listed three major pressures: economic strains that have weakened the once-strong link between democracy and prosperity; the rise of identity politics fueled by polarization in the United States; and the spread of artificial intelligence in digital platforms, which he said allows people to “have different facts, not only different opinions.”

Gentiloni said European democracies are resilient but warned that pessimism can become self-fulfilling if citizens stop defending democratic institutions.

Despite the challenges, the speakers identified areas of resilience, including active civil societies, long-standing democratic practices, institutional independence and a shared understanding that democracy, despite its flaws, still offers more safeguards and freedoms than any alternative.