This article will provide an overview of sanctions, examining their history and the current impact they have on nations and international relations. It will explore the ways in which sanctions can shape foreign policy and provide an insight into the potential consequences of such policies.
Sanctions are a tool used by governments, international organizations, and other entities to promote political or economic objectives by placing limitations on the actions of a specific country, organization, or individual. Sanctions may take the form of economic measures, such as embargoes; political measures, such as the withdrawal of diplomatic recognition; or legal measures, such as extradition requests. Sanctions can also refer to unilateral measures, such as when the United States adopted a number of sanctions against Cuba during the Cold War, or multilateral measures, such as when several countries in the United Nations imposed sanctions on Iraq after its invasion of Kuwait in 1990.
The primary objective of sanctions is to change the behavior of the targeted party or entity, whether that means changing a state’s foreign policy or forcing it to end support for a regime. Sanctions can also serve as a way to signal dissatisfaction with a certain party and create pressure to act in accordance with the wishes of the sanctioner. For example, the U.S. has recently imposed sanctions on Iran in an effort to get them to end their nuclear program.
Sanctions can be targeted at specific individuals and entities, or they may cover an entire country. They range from full-scale embargoes to targeted freezes on overseas assets, travel bans, and restrictions on technology transfer. Their effectiveness depends on how well they are implemented and enforced, so it is important for governments to closely monitor how their sanctions are carried out.
Sanctions have been a tool used to influence foreign policy and bring about change in geopolitical dynamics for centuries, with the earliest recorded usage dating back to the Peloponnesian War. More recently, sanctions have been employed as an effective non-military means of increasing pressure on countries that violate UN Security Council resolutions or commit other serious human rights abuses. During the Cold War, economic sanctions were used as a way to signify disapproval without resorting to military intervention.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the UN Security Council turned to its authority to impose sanctions on states that violated humanitarian law, such as sanctions against Iraq in 1991 and Somalia in 1992. Following the September 11 2001 attacks, the United States began using sanctions as an instrument to disrupt terrorist financing networks. The US has since leveraged financial and trade sanctions to punish those countries considered to be state sponsors of terrorism, including Iran, Syria, and North Korea.
More recently, economic sanctions have become a key tactic in diplomatic efforts. The Obama administration sought to use sanctions to prevent further Russian interference in Ukraine while the Trump administration preferred to use sanctions as a political tool to achieve foreign policy goals. This has been exemplified most recently in the US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Iran, leading to the implementation of sweeping economic sanctions. Despite the growing global acceptance of sanctions, there continue to be debates surrounding the effectiveness and impact on the populations of sanctioned countries
Sanctions can have a significant impact on the country or organization receiving them. They are often used as a form of economic warfare in order to leverage diplomatic or political changes from the target. By denying access to resources or capital, sanctions can drastically reduce the financial abilities of a target government or organization. A decrease in income and resources can cause social and economic hardships that can ultimately lead to a decrease in quality of life for citizens of the affected area.
An even more severe outcome of sanctions can be when a country becomes further isolated by other countries. This can result in limited access to humanitarian aid, medical supplies, and other resources necessary for survival. Sanctions can also be used to isolate a country politically, leaving it to stand alone against global pressure or decision-making.
The effectiveness of sanctions is dependent on the country issuing them, how strictly they are enforced, and how unified the international community is in contributing and enforcing them. If not properly enforced, sanctions can provide an inadequate response to the issue, leading to limited to no change in policy or behavior.