Global sanctions are an integral component of international diplomacy, employed by nations and international organizations to exert pressure on targeted entities – from states to individuals – to encourage compliance with international norms and regulations. However, a number of critical issues arise from the use and effectiveness of sanctions.
First, it is often difficult for sanctioning countries to reach consensus on the severity of an entity’s actions that warrant sanctions. In addition, varying geopolitical interests and economic dependencies can impede unified action. Furthermore, the sheer complexity of the international economy and cross-border trade means that sanctions inevitably impact third parties. Thus, sanctions are often perceived as unfair and can cause significant harm to civilian populations.
Lastly, long-term sanctions can also entrench power structures within targeted countries. For example, in Russia, the freezing of assets by Western countries has led to a redistribution of economic assets from state-owned enterprises and from foreign investors to domestic loyalists, such as associates of President Putin; or to foreign governments that ally with the regime. This can create a self-perpetuating cycle in which the regime is able to maintain power through loyalty from a narrow range of domestic actors and thereby extend their rule into future generations.
These challenges suggest the need for a better understanding of the rationale and effects of sanctions. CFR scholars have recently begun to address these questions through a new public good: the Global Sanctions Data Base (GSDB). In contrast to existing sanctions datasets, the GSDB allows for dynamic analysis and covers all official policy objectives across time, allowing for the measurement of a variety of important factors that influence sanction success.