Between diplomacy and war, sanctions have become the centerpiece of the American arsenal, a fundamental lever in the service of U.S. foreign policy. By cutting off access to the Western economy, sanctions dismantle industries, devastate personal fortunes, and disrupt—often exacerbate—the political imbalances of targeted regimes. All without endangering a single American soldier’s life.
Any threat, real or potential, to the U.S. economy, politics, or national security is subdued through sanctions implemented by simple administrative procedures, without the need for any judicial decision. It’s a near-permanent banishment from the global economy, as no Western company is allowed to conduct business with a sanctioned country or individual. This American supremacy not only weakens the U.S.’s adversaries but also its allies. Around the world, 60% of low-income nations are currently under sanctions, affecting individuals, organizations, and assets.
The overuse of this weapon, now applied almost reflexively, has been acknowledged at the highest levels of the U.S. government. Warnings from top civil servants caution that excessive reliance on sanctions may undermine their effectiveness. Concrete suggestions include allowing sanctions to expire automatically unless expressly renewed by Congress. Yet sanctions remain a lever no U.S. president can resist. While the Trump administration added an average of 3 names a day to its list of financial pariahs, Biden has eagerly followed suit, especially in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A whole industry has flourished in Washington, where foreign states and companies spend billions of dollars trying to influence this mechanism through specialized law firms and lobbying groups. Originally modestly introduced to oust communists from Cuba, combat drug cartels in Colombia and Mexico, and overthrow rogue regimes like in Libya, sanctions were once the domain of a small, identifiable team. Today, dozens of federal agencies—each with its own specialty—can unilaterally impose sanctions as they see fit, leading to devastating collateral effects, much like traditional warfare.
While Havana cigars are still banned in the U.S., sanctions also deprive Cuba of essential goods like medical supplies, without toppling the regime 60 years after they were first imposed. Venezuela has experienced the complete collapse of its economy under sanctions. Bashar al-Assad remains in his palace after 20 years of sanctions. And the theocratic regime in Iran, under sanctions since the 1970s, is now a key ally of Russia and China.
No one is held accountable for the harm sanctions inflict on innocent civilians in embargoed nations, and lifting them proves extraordinarily difficult in a bureaucratic country like the United States.
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