A Historical Study and Performance Analysis of the United Nations Security Council in Imposing Economic Sanctions Against States

Economic sanctions are a coercive measure that leads to the severance of economic relations between countries. The United Nations Charter empowers the Security Council to impose economic sanctions to enforce decisions made under Chapter VII, which addresses threats to peace, breaches of peace, or acts of aggression. Article 41 of the Charter states that the Security Council may decide what measures not involving the use of armed force are to be employed to give effect to its decisions and may call upon the members of the United Nations to apply such measures.
The primary objective of this study is to examine the historical background and performance of the United Nations Security Council in imposing economic sanctions against states.
Methodology:
This research is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in terms of method. Data have been collected by referring to various sources and using note-taking tools, followed by a description and explanation of the subject.
Findings:
The findings of the study indicate that the primary goal of the sanctioning country in economic sanctions is to distort the economic relations of the targeted country by reducing its level of international trade. Economic sanctions are not exclusively imposed by the United Nations but are increasingly applied unilaterally by individual states. Sanctions can have significant economic effects, but their political success is limited, often causing unacceptable harm to innocent civilians in the targeted country. Moreover, at times, even the sanctioning country may suffer considerable losses.