U.S. President Joe Biden has invited leaders from approximately 110 countries to participate in a virtual summit on democracy scheduled for December, according to a list released by the U.S. State Department on Tuesday. Only two countries from the Middle East, Israel and Iraq, were included. As expected, Biden did not invite Russia or China, the United States' main competitors, but did extend an invitation to Taiwan, a move likely to anger Beijing, which will undoubtedly be a prominent absent presence at this first-of-its-kind meeting.
Since taking office in January, President Biden has been clear that his foreign policy is based on a struggle between democracies led by the U.S. and "authoritarian regimes," which he believes are best represented by China and Russia. The "Summit for Democracy" is a promise from his electoral campaign and is set to be held virtually on December 9 and 10, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a second in-person summit planned for the end of next year.
The list of countries that Biden intended to invite was not previously known.
**Turkey Not Invited**
According to the list released by the State Department on Tuesday, in addition to U.S. Western allies, the list included countries such as India and Pakistan, but notably excluded Turkey. Turkey, a NATO member alongside the United States, was not invited to the summit, which is not surprising given that Biden has previously described Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as "autocratic." Additionally, no traditional American ally Arab countries, such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, or the UAE, were invited.
On the other hand, Biden invited Brazil, despite the fact that the Brazilian giant is led by the controversial far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. From Europe, Poland, which is accused by the European Union of not respecting the rule of law, was included, while Hungary, led by the often controversial Prime Minister Viktor Orban, was not.
From Africa, the invited countries included South Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, and Niger. This list, which Biden is expected to have curated carefully, will undergo close scrutiny from analysts and politicians around the world and is likely to be criticized by many.
**Invitation to Taiwan**
While it was expected that China would be absent from this summit, many did not anticipate that Biden would invite Taiwan, which the U.S. does not officially recognize as an independent state but views as a democratic model to be emulated in the face of the Asian giant, which considers the island an integral part of its territory and promises to reunify it one day, by force if necessary. Consequently, Taiwan's invitation to this virtual summit is expected to heighten tensions that have escalated in recent weeks between Washington and Beijing over the island.
India will participate in the summit, which, although often referred to as "the largest democracy in the world," has faced severe criticism from human rights organizations regarding its Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pakistan will also participate, despite its fluctuating relationship with the United States.
