BREAKING DOWN DEMOCRACY: Goals, Strategies, and Methods of Modern Authoritarians common ideologies, whether faith in Marxist revolution fellow authoritarian states against pressure or ultraconservative, anticommunist reaction. for democratic reform or leadership changes, international human rights norms and mech- As the 20th century drew to a close, the weaknesses anisms, and international security or justice of both communist systems and traditional dictator- interventions ships became increasingly apparent. Front and center was the growing economic gap between countries ¢ Knowledge-sharing with or emulation of fellow that had opted for market economies and regimes authoritarian states regarding tactics and legis- that were committed to statist economies. lation to enhance domestic control The political and economic barriers that had long shel- China and Russia tered the old dictatorships were soon swept away, and The two major modern authoritarian powers are China those that survived or recovered did so by making a and Russia. series of strategic concessions to the new global order. Until fairly recently, the conventional wisdom was that Modern authoritarianism has a different set of defin- China's one-party authoritarian system would gradual- ing features: ly relax as the middle class expanded and the country ¢ Anillusion of pluralism that masks state control became fully integrated into the global economic over key political institutions, with co-opted or and diplomatic systems. The leadership did expand otherwise defanged opposition parties allowed citizens’ freedom to travel, make money, and access to participate in regular elections information and entertainment that did not touch on sensitive subjects. But it has resolutely refused to give ¢ State or oligarchic control over key elements of up control over the political sphere. the national economy, which is otherwise open to the global economy and private investment, In fact, the state has become increasingl