The United States will co-host the second “Summit for Democracy” with the governments of Costa Rica, the Netherlands, Republic of Korea, and Republic of Zambia on March 29-30.
“In planning for the Summit for Democracy 2023, President Biden invited democracies that represented a diversity of regions, a diversity of country sizes, and other factors,” said acting US Embassy Spokesperson Bryan Schiller when his attention was drawn to some media reports.
Meanwhile, Counselor of the US Department of State Derek Chollet is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at Ganabhaban on Wednesday morning.
The second Summit for Democracy will assemble world leaders in a virtual, plenary format, followed by gatherings in each of the co-hosted countries with representatives from government, civil society, and the private sector.
Co-hosting the second Summit for Democracy with a regionally diverse group of co-hosts reinforces the truth that a “safer and fairer world grounded in democratic values” is both a shared aspiration and a shared responsibility.
Building on the first summit held in December 2021, the next summit, in March 2023, will highlight how democracies deliver for their citizens and are best equipped to address the world’s most pressing challenges, he said.
“As President Biden has said, democracy remains the best tool we have to unleash human potential and deliver for all people, and we must continue to champion it,” Schiller said.
Following the first summit, the United States invited all participant countries to make commitments and make 2022 a “Year of Action” to strengthen democracy.
The US also encouraged countries not invited to the first summit, including Bangladesh, to make public their own “Year of Action” plans to demonstrate their commitment to strengthening democracy, Schiller said.
One important factor in considering which countries to invite to the second summit was the degree to which countries responded to this invitation and participated in the Year of Action to strengthen democracy, he added.