For several decades already, the fundamental approach to European regional security has been built upon democratic values and institutions. Peace between some democratic states may not necessarily be the result of their being democratic. It can be due to a high level of economic interdependence or the structure of alliances or any other factors. Growing authoritarianism at both supranational and national levels impacts regional security in several important ways, as it weakens the effects of democratic peace and partially restores the security dilemma, but also makes states internally weaker. There are also reasons to believe that nationalism is on the rise in Europe once again.