(Tom Keatinge, Eliza Lockhart – RUSI) Like the proverbial frog in boiling water, malign finance can insidiously corrode democratic institutions and processes until the damage becomes irreversible. This is not alarmism. As geopolitical tensions mount and authoritarianism spreads, democracies must confront an uncomfortable reality: hostile states use finance to shape the politics of open societies, often unnoticed. Foreign powers have learned that submitting a well-timed donation or funding an effective influence campaign can achieve what tanks and missiles cannot. By injecting money into political systems through opaque financial networks, authoritarian regimes can make democratic governments more pliable, divided, and less willing to confront their adversaries. The question is whether existing checks and balances are up to the task of defending democracies against this pernicious and pervasive threat. The answer is increasingly in doubt.
Democracy’s Weakest Link: Foreign Money and Political Influence | Royal United Services Institute
