Bogdan Aurescu: Threats to democratic regimes have crossed physical boundaries, spreading to the virtual world

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, stated on Wednesday that the threats against the democratic regimes have crossed the physical borders, spreading into the virtual world. "Threats to democratic regimes have exceeded physical boundaries, spreading into the virtual world. We need to build defence mechanisms and tools to protect democratic values and virtual reality," Bogdan Aurescu was quoted as saying in a release sent to AGERPRES on Wednesday on the occasion of the International Day of Democracy. He added that democracy is not "a triumphal march, but a marathon." "The International Day of Democracy offers us the opportunity to reconfirm - individually and collectively - our deep attachment to democratic values and their promotion at the international level. As we have said many times, democracy is not a triumphal march, but a marathon. A marathon of adaptability, endurance and a commitment to work together - a marathon that we can only win together," said Aurescu. According to him, the COVID-19 pandemic triggered one of the most severe global crises, from a social, economic and political point of view. In this context, anti-democratic attitudes have been felt, and trends exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as the decline of democracy in some parts of the world, have put the resilience of democracies to the test. Romania's foreign policy strongly promotes these priorities. Increasing resilience provides the necessary conditions for democracy to continue to play the role of critical infrastructure of modern and prosperous societies, the minister added. "I will discuss all these challenges and opportunities with my counterparts at the tenth ministerial conference of the Community of Democracies, which I will host, as the Romanian Presidency of this forum, next week, on September 22, 2021, in New York, on the sidelines of the high-level week of the United Nations General Assembly. The event will address the theme 'Democracy and Resilience: Common Goals' and will provide an exchange of views that will help promote democratic principles and values globally and to strengthen democratic resilience," concluded Bogdan Aurescu. AGERPRES (RO - author: Mihai Stoica, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN - author: Bogdan Gabaroi, editor: Adina Panaitescu)