ABSTRACT
The economy of Iran has faced various types of sanctions ever since the 1979 Revolution. These sanctions were initially imposed by the United States, which was Iran's dominant trade partner before the Revolution. The first spark for the sanctions was the Iran hostage crisis. Then, in the 1980s, sanctions were part of the US dual containment policy adopted against Iran and Iraq. They were also intended to punish Iran for its anti-Western policies in the Middle East, such as its support for Hizbollah in Lebanon. A new and more important rationale was added in the 1990s, when the United States became alarmed about Iran's nuclear programme. In the 2000s, while the US-sponsored sanctions became more intense, additional sanctions were also imposed by the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) at later stages.
