The Open Access publication of this book has been published with the support of the Swiss National Science Foundation. Are unilateral economic sanctions legal under public international law? How do they relate to the existing international legal principles and norms? Can unilateral economic sanctions imposed to redress grave human rights violations be subjected to the same legal contestations as other unilateral sanctions? What potential contribution can the recently formulated doctrine of Common Concern of Humankind make by introducing substantive and procedural prerequisites to legitimise unilateral human rights sanctions? Unilateral Sanctions in International Law and the Enforcement of Human Rights by Iryna Bogdanova addresses these complex questions while taking account of the burgeoning state practice of employing unilateral economic sanctions.

This is the first book that explores whether there are any rules in international law applicable to unilateral sanctions and if so, what they are. The book examines both the lawfulness of unilateral sanctions and the limitations within which they should operate. In doing so, it includes an analysis of State practice, the provisions of various international legal instruments dealing with such sanctions and their impact on other areas of international law such as freedom of navigation, aviation and transit, and the principles of international trade, investment, regional economic integration, and the protection of human rights and the environment. This study finds that unilateral sanctions by a state or a group of states against another state as opposed to 'smart' or targeted sanctions of limited scope would be unlawful, unless they meet the procedural and substantive requirements stipulated in international law. Importantly, the book identifies and consolidates these requirements scattered in different areas of international law, including the additional rules of customary international law that have emerged out of the recent practice of States and that increase the limitations on the use of unilateral sanctions.

The purpose of this paper is to assess U.S. policy on economic sanctions and make recommendations as appropriate that will prepare the U.S. for 2010 and beyond. I will describe current national security policy in this area with some necessary background information and attempt to address policy objectives (ends), concepts or methods (ways), and means (resources). This paper will address U.S. policy as it pertains to unilateral economic sanctions only. For the purpose of this paper the definition of unilateral economic sanctions is: The deliberate, government- inspired, unilateral withdrawal, or threat of withdrawal of customary trade or financial relations. The first recorded case of trade sanctions occurred in 432 B.C., when the Athenian leader Pericles imposed sanctions on Megara. Megara appealed to Sparta for assistance, resulting in the Peloponnesian War. An early example of U.S. sanctions occurred in 1807, when President Jefferson embargoed all U.S. trade with Europe to protest British attacks on U.S. merchant ships. This effort, like most unilateral sanctions, proved to be a complete failure. The U.S. use of economic sanctions as an instrument of National Power among the four options (diplomatic, economic, military and informational) has become our weapon of choice for responding to events and situations that threaten our security. Sometimes we use them when there is no threat to our security or interests. Ernest Preeg offers a convincing argument that unilateral sanctions "let us feel good without going much good at all", in his book, Feeling Good or Doing Good with Sanctions. Unilateral sanctions are attractive to our Congressman and President because they respond to frustrations and the demand to take action.

Systematically analyzes the impacts and the effectiveness of UN targeted sanctions over the past quarter century.