Iran Sanctions may be 'Crippling,' but they are not 'Working' (Cher) Ladan Cher writes in a guest column for Informed Comment On Iran and sanctions, a necessary clarification: “Crippling” is not synonymous for “working” In the tug-of-war between Iran and the United States, sanctions remain the Hail Mary approach to an ever-present picture in international politics: a nation wants to avoid military force but needs to take some kind of political action in response to the behavior of another nation. The events of the last few weeks have reignited a spotlight on the issue: sanctions are hitting Iranians drastically harder than before by limiting civilian access to life saving medicines, and within hours of President Obama’s reelection a new round of sanctions against Iran related to media censorship went into effect.
The new round of sanctions and accompanying harsh economic consequences felt by Iranians will likely encounter a familiar response. Journalists, scholars and citizens will ask, “Are sanctions working?” How Sanctions Affect Iran's Economy. Interviewee: Dr. Hassan Hakimian, Director, London Middle East InstituteInterviewer: Toni Johnson May 23, 2012 Iran is set for a second round of talks with international negotiators in Baghdad on May 23 on its nuclear program. Some experts and U.S. officials believe that recently imposed sanctions on the country's financial and oil industries are taking an economic toll and encouraging Iran to negotiate. However, Hassan Hakimian, director of the London Middle East Institute and an economics expert, says Iran's economy seems to be doing better than some believe, and that "it remains to be seen" whether the sanctions' bite will impact negotiations.
He also says Iran's government, like other governments under sanction, may find ways of shielding itself from the worst economic effects. How do you think Iran's economy is doing overall, given the sanctions? Iran's economy is facing a lot of challenges, and these challenges have been accentuated by the sanctions. It is very difficult to tell. Sanctioning Iran: An Interview on Iran's Ruling Bloc, Internal Strife, and International Pressure.
On the last day of 2011, US President Obama signed into law a military authorization bill containing a provision that imposes new sanctions presumably in order to punish Iran for its nuclear program. The sanctions force foreign financial institutions that do business with Iran’s central bank to choose to either end that business or be blocked from the US economy. In a parallel development. On 3 January, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé said he had no doubt that Iran was developing nuclear weapons and urged the European Union to follow the United States and adopt stricter sanctions by freezing Iranian central bank assets and imposing sanctions on Tehran’s oil exports by the end of the month. Iranian officials have generally dismissed the threat of sanctions. Ali Rezaei is a social researcher currently completing doctoral work at the University of Calgary. Sanctioning Iran by Jadaliyya.
Tehran can limp along under sanctions, but ordinary Iranians are bearing the brunt. Iran Sanctions.