International sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for
political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.
There are several types of sanctions. Diplomatic sanctions - the reduction or
removal of diplomatic ties, such as embassies.
Economic sanctions - typically a ban on trade, possibly limited to certain
sectors such as armaments, or with certain exceptions
Military sanctions - military intervention
Sport sanctions - preventing one country's people and teams from
competing in international events. Economic sanctions are distinguished
from trade sanctions, which are applied for purely economic reasons, and
typically take the form of tariffs or similar measures, rather than bans on
trade. Types
= Reasons for sanctioning = Sanctions formulations are designed into
three categories. The categories are used to differentiate between the
political contexts due to the global nature of the act.
First category involves such sanctions that are designed to force cooperation
with international Law. This can be seen in the sanctions placed on Iraq in
Resolution No. 661 on August 6, 1990, after the initial invasion of
neighboring Kuwait. The United Nations placed an Embargo on the nation in an
attempt to prevent armed conflict. Resolution 665 and Resolution 670 were
further added creating both naval and air blockade on Iraq. The purpose of the
initial sanctions was to coerce Iraq into following international law, which
included the recognized sovereignty of Kuwait.
The second category of design is those sanctions with the purpose to contain a
threat to peace within a geographical boundary. The 2010 Iran nuclear
proliferation debate is a contemporary example. The current United Nations
Security Council passed on June 9, Resolution 1929 providing restrictions
on missile and weaponry materials that could be used for the creation of
destructive weapons. This principle of restriction is to contain the
possibility of Iranian aggression with in the neighboring region.
The third category involves the United Nations Security Councils condemnation
of actions of a specific action or policy of a member/non-member nation.
The white minority declared a declaration of Rhodesian Independence on
November 11, 1965. The General assemble and United Nations in a 107 to 2 vote
took to condemning Rhodesia on all military, economic, as well as oil and
petroleum products. The international display of disapproval forced sanctions
onto the Rhodesian people, but without a clear goal as to a remedy for the
economic sanctions. The three categories are a blanket
explanation on the reasons sanctions are applied to nations, but it does not go
as far as to say that voting members share the same political reasons for
imposing them. It is often the case for many nations to be driven by
self-interests in one or more categories when voting on whether or not to
implement sanctions. = Diplomatic sanctions =
Diplomatic sanctions are political measures taken to express disapproval or
displeasure at a certain action through diplomatic and political means, rather
than affecting economic or military relations. Measures include limitations
or cancellations of high-level government visits or expelling or
withdrawing diplomatic missions or staff.
= Economic sanctions = Economic sanctions can vary from
imposing import duties on goods from, or blocking the export of certain goods to
the target country, to a full naval blockade of the target's ports in an
effort to verify, and curb or block specified imported goods.
Well known examples of economic sanctions include:
Napoleon's Continental System of 1806-1814, directed against British
trade the United Nations sanctions against
South Africa United Nations sanctions against
Zimbabwe United Nations sanctions against Iraq
the United States embargo against Cuba Since 1993 many countries have imposed
trade sanctions on Burma. The case of South Africa gives rise to
the typical example used for arguing for the effectiveness of sanctions, though
that alleged effectiveness remains a matter of debate.
On May 13, 1998, the United States and Japan imposed economic sanctions on
India following that country's second round of nuclear tests. Japan lifted its
sanctions against India three years later. The US lifted its sanctions
against India in 2001. In 2001/2002 the United States imposed
economic sanctions against the state of Zimbabwe, through the Zimbabwe Democracy
and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 or ZDERA, S. 494, restricting access to
financing, debt relief and rescheduling, and forcing the Zimbabwean government to
operate on a cash-only basis. = Military sanctions =
Similarly, military sanctions can range from carefully targeted military strikes
to degrade a nation's conventional or non-conventional capabilities, to the
less aggressive form of an arms embargo to cut off supplies of arms or dual-use
items. = Sport sanctions =
Sport sanctions are used as a way of psychological warfare, intended to crush
the morale of the general population of the target country. The only instance
where sports sanctions were used were the international sanctions against
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, 1992–1995, enacted by UN Security
Council by resolution 757. The Gleneagles Agreement approved by the
Commonwealth of Nations in 1977, committed member nations to discourage
contact and competition between their sportsmen and sporting organisations,
teams or individuals from South Africa. However, it was not binding and unable
to stop events such as the 1980 British Lions tour to South Africa or the 1981
South Africa rugby union tour of New Zealand.
= Sanctions on individuals = The United Nations Security Council can
implement sanctions on political leaders or economic individuals. These persons
usually find ways of evading their sanction because of political
connections within their nation. Sanctions in international law
Entities favorable to the target of another government's sanctions may claim
that sanctions imposed by single countries or by an intergovernmental
body like the United Nations are "illegal" or "criminal" due to, in the
case of economic sanctions, the Right to development or, in the case of military
sanctions, the Right of self-defense. A 1996 report by International Progress
Organization criticized sanctions as "an illegitimate form of collective
punishment of the weakest and poorest members of society, the infants, the
children, the chronically ill, and the elderly."
= Dissolution of sanctions = There are several ways to remove and
dissolve sanctions that have been implemented on a nation(s). In some
cases such as those implemented on Iraq in 1990, only a reverse resolution can
be used to remove the sanctions. This is done when no provision is put in the
resolution for the removal of sanctions. This is generally only done if the
sanctioned party has shown willingness to adopt certain conditions of the
Security Council. Another way sanctions can be removed is when time limits are
implemented with the initial sanction. After an extended duration the sanction
will eventually be lifted off the nation despite cooperation. Additional
sanctions may be placed however if the Security Council deems it necessary. The
practice of time limitations has grown over the years and allows for gradual
removal of restrictions on nations conforming to at least partial
conditions imposed by the Security Council .
See also Embargo
References