Democracy News

Admiral Dennis Blair's Discusses The Role of the Armed Forces in Democratic Transition Handbook
October 21, 2011
By: Mark Hsen | Printer Friendly

On October 21, former United States Director of National Intelligence Admiral Dennis Blair appeared on Milwaukee Public Radio to discuss CCD’s new Handbook titled, The Role of the Armed Forces in Democratic Transition .  The Handbook project will be led by Blair in conjunction with CCD to discuss the role of the military in democratic development and to provide practical advice for military-to-military relations to advance democracy.  The Handbook will feature regional case studies to provide contextual examples on how militaries in democratic nations can influence their counterparts in authoritarian states to transition to democracy.

In his discussion, Blair commented on the decisive role of the military as "key props" in either supporting or ending a repressive regime.  When the military supports a dictatorship, the regime will maintain its grasp on power.  However, as in Egypt and Tunisia, when the military refuses intervention in popular uprisings, the regime is unlikely maintain its authority.  In shifting towards democracy, military leaders must realize that supporting the regime is no longer in their best interests.

Blair identified the critical role of militaries in democratic nations to influence their counterparts towards democratization.  Armed forces are often in contact through conferences, training missions, and peacekeeping operations.  Military members from non-democratic states can observe and view the benefits of democracy as a potential model for their own country.  Democratic nations can use these existing relationships as opportunities to encourage the transition towards democracy. 

Blair commented that there is currently no formalized procedure for these types of interactions.  Military officers often believe that this type of influence would infringe upon diplomatic relations.  Blair believes that this is a misinterpretation of the military's apolitical nature.  Blair emphasized that these cross-national relationships were not intended for political motives, but rather as a mutually beneficial relationship.  The spread of democracy would be advantageous not only for the formerly authoritarian nations, but for existing democracies as well.  With no standardized training for military-to-military interaction to encourage democratization, the new CCD Handbook would act as a guide to allow effective engagement.

CCD previously published A Diplomat's Handbook for Democracy Development Support, which is meant to present a wide variety of case studies documenting and explaining specific country experiences. It also identifies creative, human, and material resources available to diplomatic missions, the ways in which missions and diplomats have supported requests in the past, and describes how such support has been applied. 

To listen to the interview, please see:
WUWM Milwaukee Public Radio – Former Nat'l Intelligence Director on Military in Democracy Building