‘We mustn’t despair’: Restoring faith in democracy key amid Russian threat, says Trudeau

Since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, Western leaders have emphasized that the Russian president underestimated the resolve of democratic countries to respond.

Countering the threat that Russian President Vladimir Putin poses to democracies around the world will require those countries to confront floundering faith in public institutions among their citizens, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.

“Vladimir Putin is undoubtedly a threat to Ukrainians, and to people outside their borders. Even as we are clear-eyed about the challenges he presents, we mustn’t despair,” Trudeau said in a keynote address to the Munich Security Conference in Berlin, Germany.

“Democracy is always stronger than authoritarianism,” he added, before noting: “If we’re going to be honest with each other, democracy hasn’t exactly been at its best.”

Since Putin invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, Western leaders have repeatedly emphasized that the Russian president underestimated the resolve of democratic countries and the NATO military alliance to respond.

Myriad rounds of sanctions are now in place against Russia, targeting the wealth of Putin and his inner circle as well as Russian companies and banks — including the Russian central bank that Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland frequently describes as Putin’s “war chest.”

The result has been a collapse in the value of the Russian currency and deep economic shockwaves, including ripple effects on the price of gas in the West.

Trudeau said Western leaders are united in their resolve to make Putin pay for his invasion of sovereign Ukraine. But he said it is crucial for democracies to take stock of the rising apathy, cynicism, declining voter turnout and misinformation that is plaguing their citizenries.

“It’s our job to rebuild that trust, to give people reasons to have faith in our institutions, to get involved in civic life,” Trudeau said.