ABSTRACT
The chapter discusses the role that the principle of proportionality plays in shaping the EU power to impose sanctions. It addresses two main aspects, namely the direct imposition of sanctions by the EU institutions and bodies and the national authorities’ obligation to resort to sanctions as a means to enforce EU law. The analysis underscores that proportionality covers all phases of the sanctioning cycle, from the abstract pre-determination of a measure to its actual imposition, thereby requiring appropriate monitoring and remedies at the normative and judicial layers. Due to its inherent elusiveness and to the many facets of EU sanctioning power, proportionality and its monitoring follow very different trajectories, depending on the domain at issue and the tasks of the European and national institutions involved. However, the analysis identifies some recurring features, which provide an illustration of the current magnitude of and constraints on EU sanctioning power.
