Authoritarianism is not pretending anymore to be a real alternative to democracy, but we can see many more authoritarian practices and styles basically being smuggled into democratic governments.

Democracy has always been in crisis: democracy is all about practicing the art of bearable dissatisfaction. In democratic societies, people often complain about their leaders and their institutions. The gap between the ideal democracy and the existing one cannot be bridged.

A more stable relationship between Poland and Russia based on reconciliation might revive the reunification of Europe.

For the Kremlin, it is more feasible to preserve its great-power status in cooperation with the United States than in confrontation.

Russians clearly perceive America's global influence as being in irreversible decline and American society shattered by major political, economic and ideological crises.

Undoubtedly, a democratic state without an alternative is a danger to democracy itself.