ABSTRACT
Economic sanctions are almost never solely responsible for the outcome produced in an international conflict, but they may be important contributory factors. Much of the confusion and controversy about the utility of international economic sanctions stems from confusion about the purposes which they can and are intended to serve. The first purpose of sanctions, both conceptually and historically, is punitive. Whether based on legal or utilitarian considerations, the thrust of this approach is to make a wrong-doer suffer a penalty for his act. Economic sanctions are not only intended to punish those who have acted unacceptably in the past. They are also intended to deter those actors and others from engaging in similar behaviour in the future. The types of changes encompassed within this category are numerous and disparate. Indeed, the range is so great that a strong argument could be made for subdividing the category into two or more separate purposes.
