While the annual Halifax International Security Forum historically focuses on defence, democracy was at the forefront of this year’s agenda.
Democracy is being challenged globally with the increasing influence of authoritarian regimes and with the United States — traditionally a democratic leader — signalling a shift away from supporting democratic efforts and protecting the rules based international order.
The United States' commitment to democracy and Canada-U.S. relations were main discussions at the Forum, with a large bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation attending alongside Canadian political and military leaders.
This episode of Profile explores the defence of democracy through interviews by award-winning CPAC host Michael Serapio featuring Peter Van Praagh, President, HFX; Chris Coons, United States Democratic Senator (Delaware); Janice Gross Stein, Founding Director, Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto; and James Bezan, Conservative Shadow Minister for National Defence.