ABSTRACT
In what follows, we first outline our theoretical argument about the credibility of democracy promotion as a requisite of its effectiveness in situations of regime competition. We then explore the plausibility of our argument empirically in the case of transatlantic democracy support in Tunisia and the influence of Saudi Arabia thereon. Taking the internal-external interaction and the potential countervailing effect of regional authoritarian powers seriously is of rising importance for the very practice of supporting democratic change from the outside.
