Weller: The Controversy about the Iranian Nuclear Sanctions Snapback

Marc Weller (Univ. of Cambridge - Law) has posted an ASIL Insight on The Controversy about the Iranian Nuclear Sanctions Snapback.

Conference: Unilateral / extraterritorial sanctions

On December 12-13, 2019, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne will host a conference on "Unilateral / extraterritorial sanctions." Registration is here. The program is here.

Asada: Economic Sanctions in International Law and Practice

Masahiko Asada (Kyoto Univ. – Law) has published Economic Sanctions in International Law and Practice (Routledge 2019). Contents include:

• Masahiko Asada, Definition and legal justification of sanctions
• Philippe Achilleas, United Nations and sanctions
• Pierre-Emmanuel Dupont, Human rights implications of sanctions
• Mirko Sossai, Legality of extraterritorial sanctions
• Jean-Marc Thouvenin, History of implementation of sanctions
• Richard Nephew, Implementation of sanctions: United States
• Francesco Giumelli, Implementation of sanctions: European Union
• Machiko Kanetake, Implementation of sanctions: Japan
• Andrea Berger, North Korea: Design, implementation, and evasion
• Kazuto Suzuki, Iran: The role and effectiveness of UN sanctions
• Tatsuya Abe, Syria: The chemical weapons question and autonomous sanctions
• Mika Hayashi, Russia: The Crimea question and autonomous sanctions

Menkes: The Legality of US Investment Sanctions against Iran before the ICJ: A Watershed Moment for the Essential Security and Necessity Exceptions

Marcin J. Menkes (Warsaw School of Economics) has posted The Legality of US Investment Sanctions against Iran before the ICJ: A Watershed Moment for the Essential Security and Necessity Exceptions (Canadian Yearbook of International Law, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

International courts and tribunals so far have shown reluctance to delimit the normative scope of the essential security and necessity exceptions in international economic law. Legal scholars have also refrained from identifying the point of equilibrium between maintaining the core protections of international law and allowing for necessary flexibility in its application. This article argues that such stances are now untenable. The unilateral US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, and the reintroduction of sanctions, has challenged the multilateral order. Although the sanctions resemble earlier measures, violation of the deal and of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231(2015) has altered the normative context. The threat to the stability of the post-war multilateral order by a permanent member of the Security Council is unique. The author shows why Iran’s recourse to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in this context should become a landmark case for international economic law and how it traps the ICJ in a gilded cage.

AJIL Unbound Symposium: Unilateral Targeted Sanctions

AJIL Unbound has posted a symposium on "Unilateral Targeted Sanctions." The symposium includes an introduction by Anne van Aaken and contributions by Antonios Tzanakopoulos, Devika Hovell, David S. Cohen and Zachary K. Goldman, Joshua P. Zoffer, Elena Chachko, and Alexandra Hofer.

Seminar: Expert Dialogue on the EU Blocking Regulation and Extraterritorial US Sanctions

On April 19, 2019, Utrecht University’s Law School’s research programme on Regulation and Enforcement in Europe will hold an "Expert Dialogue on the EU Blocking Regulation and Extraterritorial US Sanctions." The program is here.

Gordon, Smyth, & Cornell: Sanctions Law

Richard Gordon, Michael Smyth, & Tom Cornell have published Sanctions Law (Hart Publishing 2019). Here's the abstract:

This book aims to create a user-friendly, accessible guide to the complex area of sanctions law. In particular, the book will examine how sanctions restrictions work in practice, and what the implications are for multinational businesses operating across numerous sanctions regimes. To this extent, the book considers the interrelationship between sanctions at the supranational and national levels, including the impact of the far-reaching US sanctions regime. The book's aim is not to provide an exhaustive list of sanctions regulations, but rather a framework for engaging with the relevant legislation and the main issues arising therefrom. Reinforcing this practical and commercially-focused approach, each chapter is written in a format that enables easy reading and rapid assimilation. Where there are relevant materials, be they legislative or case-law, these are outlined at the start of each chapter. In addition, the chapters dealing with challenges to sanctions designations each include a section with key principles, providing the clearest possible treatment of the subject.

Sognigbé Sangbana: La sanction internationale de la violation des droits de l’homme

Muriel Sognigbé Sangbana (Fondation René Cassin – Institut international des droits de l’homme) has published La sanction internationale de la violation des droits de l’homme (Pedone 2018). Here's the abstract:

La sanction internationale de la violation des droits de l’homme peine à atteindre les objectifs qui lui sont assignés. Les sanctions non juridictionnelles mises en place au sein du système de la Charte des Nations unies sont le régime de droit commun, mais leur efficacité reste limitée pour la victime. Les Comités créés pour veiller à l’application des conventions relatives aux droits de l’homme prennent de simples recommandations à l’issue de l’examen des communications individuelles et sont incompétents pour connaître des violations graves. À défaut de mécanisme de sanction des violations graves, le Conseil de sécurité a étendu l’application des mesures collectives aux droits de l’homme. Le recours ainsi fait au Chapitre VII est confronté aux difficultés opérationnelles qui en limitent la portée. Face à ces difficultés, le Conseil de sécurité a diversifié ses sanctions. Toutefois, qu’elles soient des sanctions ciblées ou des mesures juridictionnelles comme la création de juridictions pénales ou la saisine de la Cour pénale internationale, les mesures collectives sont axées sur l’individu et non l’État. Bien que ce dernier soit le titulaire des obligations internationales en la matière, il est à l’abri de toute sanction contraignante, collective ou pénale. L’absence de sanction efficace à l’encontre de l’État et la garantie insuffisante des droits de la victime impose une réforme du contentieux international des droits de l’homme, à l’aune de la protection régionale des droits de l’homme qui se distingue par sa juridictionnalisation et par les garanties des droits de la victime. Au-delà du renforcement des mécanismes des organes de traités, la création d’une juridiction universelle chargée de sanctionner la violation des droits de l’homme au sein du système des Nations unies doit être envisagée.

van den Herik: Research Handbook on UN Sanctions and International Law

Larissa van den Herik (Leiden Univ. - Law) has published Research Handbook on UN Sanctions and International Law (Edward Elgar Publishing 2017). Contents include:

• Larissa van den Herik, The individualization and formalization of UN sanctions
• Tom Ruys, Sanctions, retorsions and countermeasures: concepts and international legal framework
• Sue Eckert, The evolution and effectiveness of UN targeted sanctions
• Lisa Ginsborg, UN sanctions and counter-terrorism strategies: moving towards thematic sanctions against individuals?
• Dan Joyner, UN counter-proliferation sanctions and international law
• Matthew Happold, UN sanctions as human rights and humanitarian law devices
• Daniëlla Dam-de Jong, UN natural resources sanctions regimes: incorporating market-based responses to address market- driven problems
• Alejandro Rodiles, The design of UN sanctions through the interplay with informal arrangements
• Devika Hovell, Glasnost in the Security Council: the value of transparency
• Kimberly Prost, Security Council sanctions and fair process
• Kristen Boon, Timing matters: termination policies for UN sanctions
• Pierre-Emmanuel Dupont, UN sanctions and international financial institutions
• Andrew Mitchell, Sanctions and the World Trade Organization
• Eric De Brabandere & David Holloway, Sanctions and international arbitration
• Mercédeh Azeredoh da Silveira, Economic sanctions and contractual disputes between private operators
• Ward Ferdinandusse & Pieter Rademakers, The prosecution of sanctions busters
• Mirko Sossai, UN sanctions and regional organizations: an analytical framework
• Penelope Nevill, Interpretation and review of UN sanctions by European courts: comity & conflict
• Machiko Kanetake & Congyan Cai, Chinese and Japanese perspectives on UN sanctions
• Amelia Broodryk & Anton du Plessis, African perceptions of UN sanctions
• Jeremy Levitt, UN sanctions and peace construction in West Africa

Call for Papers: Effectiveness, Impact and Monitoring of Non-UN Sanctions

The European Society of International Law has issued a call for papers for the second session in a two-part symposium on "Non-UN Sanctions and International Law." The theme of the second session is: "Effectiveness, Impact and Monitoring of Non-UN Sanctions." Here's the call:

EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
PRAGUE-NOTTINGHAM SYMPOSIUM:
NON-UN SANCTIONS AND INTERNATIONAL LAW

5 May 2017: Institute of International Relations, Prague
10 November 2017: Nottingham International Law and Security Centre, University of Nottingham

CALL FOR PAPERS FOR THE NOTTINGHAM EVENT:
EFFECTIVENESS, IMPACT AND MONITORING OF NON-UN SANCTIONS

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On 5 May 2017, the first part of an ESIL symposium co-organized by the Institute of International Relations in Prague and the Nottingham International Law and Security Centre, University of Nottingham, was held in Prague. At this event 12 papers were presented and discussed by experts in the very productive environment of the Cernin Palace, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, in Prague.

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The second part of the symposium will be held at the Nottingham International Law and Security Centre in the School of Law at the University of Nottingham on Friday 10 November 2017. The overall topic of the symposium is ‘Non-UN Sanctions and International Law’. The idea is to consider various aspects of sanctions adopted outside the UN context, by individual States, groups of States, regional organizations or other actors.

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While the Prague event focused on the legality and legitimacy of non-UN sanctions, the Nottingham event will concentrate on the effectiveness and impact of non-UN sanctions and the monitoring of such sanctions by States or non-State actors.

The ESIL symposium is a scholarly event that promotes an intensive and targeted discussion of a selected topic of international law. Approximately 8-12 papers will be selected from among the submissions. The most original papers may be considered for publication in a special issue of the Journal of Conflict and Security Law (published by Oxford University Press) in 2018.

Call for Papers for the Nottingham event: Effectiveness, Impact and Monitoring of Non-UN Sanctions

Papers discussing any dimension of the topic of effectiveness, impact and monitoring of nonUN Sanctions, taking a theoretical, doctrinal or empirical approach, will be given serious consideration.

The organizers particularly welcome papers addressing one or more of the following issues:

• The effectiveness of unilateral or multilateral targeted or general non-UN sanctions in terms of changing the ‘targets’ behaviour;
• The effectiveness of unilateral or multilateral non-UN sanctions in achieving goals of peace and security, human rights compliance, or other goals;
• The impact of unilateral or multilateral non-UN sanctions taken outside the UN context in terms of health, development, governance, self-determination and human rights;
• Monitoring of the effectiveness and impact of non-UN sanctions by those States or other actors imposing such measures, and by other bodies and organisations such as human rights bodies or NGOs;
• The role of the private sector and other non-state actors, e.g. banks, financial institutions and law firms, in giving effect to non-UN sanctions;
• The responsiveness of non-UN sanctions regimes to criticisms and concerns regarding effectiveness and impact;
• The relationship between the legality and legitimacy of non-UN sanctions and their effectiveness and impact.

Abstracts (of not more than 750 words) should be submitted to [email protected] by 31 July 2017. Please include your name, email address, and a one-page curriculum vitae with your abstract.

Successful applicants will be notified by email by 25 August 2017. Drafts of papers (of not more than 10,000 words) will be required by 10 October 2017.

Successful applicants will be expected to bear the costs of their own travel and accommodation. However, ESIL travel grants will be made available to offer partial financial support to speakers. Speakers and participants in the symposium will be informed of hotels that offer preferential rates. Lunch and coffee breaks will be provided.

Symposium: Non-UN Sanctions and International Law

The Institute of International Relations and the Nottingham International Law and Security Centre at the University of Nottingham will hold the first of a two-part symposium on May 5, 2017, in Prague. The overall topic of the symposium is "Non-UN Sanctions and International Law." The program for the first event is here.

Happold & Eden: Economic Sanctions and International Law

Matthew Happold (Univ. of Luxembourg - Law) & Paul Eden (Univ. of Sussex - Law) have published Economic Sanctions and International Law (Hart Publishing 2016). Contents include:

• Matthew Happold, Economic Sanctions and International Law: An Introduction
• Alexander Orakhelashvili, Sanctions and Fundamental Rights of States: The Case of EU Sanctions Against Iran and Syria
• Pierre-Emmanuel Dupont, Unilateral European Sanctions as Countermeasures: The Case of the EU Measures Against Iran
• Antonios Tzanakopoulos, State Reactions to Illegal Sanctions
• Matthew Happold, Targeted Sanctions and Human Rights
• Clemens A Feinäugle, UN Smart Sanctions and the UN Declaration on the Rule of Law
• Paul Eden, United Nations Targeted Sanctions, Human Rights and the Office of the Ombudsperson
• Luca Pantaleo, Sanctions Cases in the European Courts
• Rachel Barnes, United States Sanctions: Delisting Applications, Judicial Review and Secret Evidence
• Penelope Nevill, Sanctions and Commercial Law

Happold: Targeted Sanctions and Human Rights

Matthew Happold (Université du Luxembourg - Law) has posted Targeted Sanctions and Human Rights (in Economic Sanctions and Human Rights, Matthew Happold & Paul Eden eds., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This chapter examines the compatibility of targeted sanctions – that is, sanctions directed against specific named persons – with the human rights of those who they target. It addresses both sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council and other international organisations, in particular the European Union, and individual States. And it does so by looking at the compatibility of such sanctions with procedural and substantive human rights.

Kanetake & Cai: Chinese and Japanese Perspectives on UN Sanctions

Machiko Kanetake (Utrecht Univ. - Law) & Cai Congyan (Xiamen Univ. - Law) have posted Chinese and Japanese Perspectives on UN Sanctions (in Research Handbook on UN Sanctions and International Law, Larissa van den Herik ed., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This chapter analyzes how the methodological transition of the UN Security Council’s sanctions regimes has necessitated, as well as justified, greater changes in domestic law. This chapter examines the cases of two East Asian countries, the People’s of Republic of China (PRC) and Japan. The combined efforts to depict the two countries’ political and legal positions highlight the relevance of domestic political and legal contexts in ensuring the implementation of the UN Security Council’s international sanctions.

Call for Papers: Legality and Legitimacy of Non-UN Sanctions

The European Society of International Law has issued a call for papers for the first session in a two-part symposium on "Non-UN Sanctions and International Law." Here's the call:

EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
PRAGUE-NOTTINGHAM SYMPOSIUM:
NON-UN SANCTIONS AND INTERNATIONAL LAW

5 May 2017: Institute of International Relations, Prague
10 November 2017: Nottingham International Law and Security Centre, University of Nottingham

CALL FOR PAPERS FOR THE PRAGUE EVENT:
LEGALITY AND LEGITIMACY OF NON-UN SANCTIONS

In 2017, an ESIL symposium will take place, co-organized by the Institute of International Relations in Prague, Czech Republic, and the Nottingham International Law and Security Centre, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom. The symposium will consist of two oneday events, one organized on 5 May 2017 in Prague, the other on 10 November 2017 in Nottingham. The overall topic of the symposium is Non-UN Sanctions and International Law. The idea is to consider various aspects of sanctions adopted outside the UN context, by individual States, groups of States, regional organizations or other actors.

• The Prague event will focus on the legality and legitimacy of Non-UN Sanctions.

• The Nottingham event will concentrate on the effectiveness of Non-UN Sanctions and the monitoring of such sanctions by States or Non-state actors.

The ESIL Symposium is a scholarly event that promotes an intensive and targeted discussion of a selected topic of international law. Approximately 8-12 papers will be selected from among the submissions for each of the one-day events. The most original papers may be considered for publication in a special issue of the Journal of Conflict and Security Law (published by Oxford University Press) in 2018.

Call for Papers for the Prague event: Legality and Legitimacy of Non-UN Sanctions

Papers discussing any dimension of the topic of Legality and Legitimacy of Non-UN Sanctions, taking a theoretical or more policy-oriented approach, will be given serious consideration.

The organizers particularly welcome papers addressing one of the following set of issues:

• the legal ground(s) for Non-UN Sanctions under current international law;
• the relationship between UN and Non-UN Sanctions;
• the legitimate aims pursued by Non-UN Sanctions;
• the legality of Non-UN Sanctions adopted to promote fundamental interests of the international community (sanctions in reaction to the use of force or to gross human rights violations);
• the role of non-state (private) actors in Non-UN Sanctions;
• sanctions as a tool of the Common Foreign and Security Policy of the EU;
• the legality of counter-sanctions;
• potential conflicts with human rights law, trade and investment law

Abstracts (of not more than 750 words) should be submitted to [email protected] by 25 October 2016. Please include your name, email address and a one-page curriculum vitae with your abstract.

Successful applicants will be notified by email by 15 December 2016. Complete drafts of papers (of not more than 10,000 words) will be required by 1 April 2017.

Successful applicants will be expected to bear the costs of their own travel and accommodation. However, ESIL travel grants will be made available to offer partial financial support to participants. Speakers and participants in the symposium will be informed of hotels that offer preferential rates. Lunch and coffee breaks will be provided.

N.B. The Call for Papers for the Nottingham event will be issued in May 2017.

Ronzitti: Coercive Diplomacy, Sanctions and International Law

Natalino Ronzitti (LUISS Guido Carli - Law) has published Coercive Diplomacy, Sanctions and International Law (Brill | Nijhoff). Contents include:

• Natalino Ronzitti, Foreword
• Natalino Ronzitti, Sanctions as Instruments of Coercive Diplomacy: an International Law Perspective
• Michael Bothe, Compatibility and Legitimacy of Sanctions Regimes
• Bryan R. Early, Confronting the Implementation and Enforcement Challenges Involved in Imposing Economic Sanctions
• Marco Gestri, Sanctions Imposed by the European Union: Legal and Institutional Aspects
• Charlotte Beaucillon, Practice Makes Perfect, Eventually? Unilateral State Sanctions and the Extraterritorial Effects of National Legislation
• Nigel D. White, Sanctions Against Non-State Actors
• Thilo Marauhn & Ignaz Stegmiller, Sanctions and the Protection of Human Rights: The Role of Sanctions Committees
• Monica Lugato, Sanctions and Individual Rights
• Daniel H. Joyner, International Legal Limits on the Ability of States to Lawfully Impose International Economic/Financial Sanctions Andrea Atteritano & Maria Beatrice Deli, An Overview of International Sanctions’ Impact on Treaties and Contract
• Marina Mancini, UN Sanctions Targeting Individuals and ICC Proceedings: How to Achieve a Mutually Reinforcing Interaction
• Francesco Giumelli, From Effective to Useful Sanctions: Lessons Learned from the Experience of the European Union
• Joachim Krause, Western Economic and Political Sanctions as Instruments of Strategic Competition with Russia – Opportunities and Risks
• Natalino Ronzitti, Conclusion

Ruys: Sanctions, Retorsions and Countermeasures: Concepts and International Legal Framework

Tom Ruys (Ghent Univ. - Law) has posted Sanctions, Retorsions and Countermeasures: Concepts and International Legal Framework (in Research Handbook on UN Sanctions and International Law, Larissa van den Herik ed., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This chapter aims at giving a broader overview of the concepts of sanctions and countermeasures and the overarching international legal framework. At the outset, a note of caution is due. In spite of the laudable efforts of the International Law Commission, the issue of enforcement by means of non-forcible measures is and remains ‘one of the least developed areas of international law’. Notwithstanding its importance, it remains plagued by a variety of delicate controversies and grey areas. The present chapter’s aim is essentially to map the main knowns and, perhaps even more so, the main unknowns.

Section 2 looks at the extent to which sanctions may constitute mere ‘unfriendly’ retorsions that largely operate below the radar of international law. In the alternative, Section 3 examines the main accepted legal bases which may justify the recourse to sanctions by States and organizations. Section 4 turns to the controversy over the legality of third-party countermeasures. Section 5 concludes.

Beuren: Das Al Qaida-Sanktionsregime als Ausübung supranationaler Kompetenzen durch den Sicherheitsrat

John Beuren has published Das Al Qaida-Sanktionsregime als Ausübung supranationaler Kompetenzen durch den Sicherheitsrat (Duncker & Humblot 2016). Here's the abstract:

Als internationale Organisation sind die Vereinten Nationen prinzipiell auf die Regelung von Rechtsbeziehungen zwischen den Staaten angelegt. Wie können ihnen, wie es der Titel der Arbeit zu unterstellen scheint, dann supranationale Kompetenzen zugeschrieben werden? Eine supranationale Organisation zeichnet sich insbesondere durch die Fähigkeit aus, unter Rückgriff auf einen Anwendungsvorrang vor staatlichem Recht unmittelbar bindende Normen für Individuen erlassen zu können. Tatsächlich haben die Vereinten Nationen bereits diverse supranationale Regelungsregime eingerichtet. Die Arbeit beschäftigt sich sowohl mit der Frage der Legalität als auch der Legitimität dieses Vorgehens, um darauf aufbauend mit einem rechtspolitischen Vorschlag zur künftigen Ausgestaltung entsprechender Regime abzuschließen. Als Anwendungsbeispiel dazu dient das Al Qaida-Sanktionsregime, das den Vereinten Nationen seit Jahren als »standard setter« in diesem Bereich dient und zugleich ein zentrales Instrument zur Terrorismusbekämpfung darstellt. Durch die Aufnahme des sog. Islamischen Staates in den Kreis der Sanktionsadressaten hat das Regime nochmals seine Bedeutung unterstrichen.

Biersteker, Eckert, & Tourinho: Targeted Sanctions: The Impacts and Effectiveness of United Nations Action

Thomas J. Biersteker (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies), Sue E. Eckert (Brown Univ. - Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs), & Marcos Tourinho (Fundacao Getulio Vargas) have published Targeted Sanctions: The Impacts and Effectiveness of United Nations Action (Cambridge Univ. Press 2016). Contents include:

• Sue Eckert, Thomas J. Biersteker & Marcos Tourinho, Introduction
• Thomas J. Biersteker, Marcos Tourinho & Sue Eckert, Thinking about United Nations targeted sanctions
• Francesco Giumelli, The purposes of targeted sanctions
• Michael Brzoska & George A. Lopez, Security council dynamics and sanctions design
• Paul Bentall, United Nations targeted sanctions and other policy tools: diplomacy, legal, use of force
• Andrea Charron & Clara Portela, The relationship between United Nations sanctions and regional sanctions regimes
• Alix Boucher & Caty Clement, Coordination of United Nations sanctions with other actors and instruments
• Enrico Carisch & Loraine Rickard-Martin, Implementation of United Nations targeted sanctions
• Kimberly Ann Elliott, The impacts of United Nations targeted sanctions
• Mikael Eriksson, The unintended consequences of United Nations targeted sanctions
• Thomas J. Biersteker, Marcos Tourinho & Sue Eckert, The effectiveness of United Nations targeted sanctions
• Peter Wallensteen, Institutional learning in targeting sanctions
• Thomas J. Biersteker, Marcos Tourinho & Sue Eckert, Conclusion

Joyner: United Nations Counter-Proliferation Sanctions and International Law

Daniel Joyner (Univ. of Alabama - Law) has posted United Nations Counter-Proliferation Sanctions and International Law (in Research Handbook on U.N. Sanctions and International Law, Larissa van den Herik ed., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This chapter addresses the subject of the legal limitations that international law places on the imposition of coercive international economic and financial sanctions, with particular reference to sanctions with counter-proliferation aims — i.e., purposed in stopping the actual or suspected proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Economic sanctions, whether imposed multilaterally by the U.N. Security Council or unilaterally by states, have become an increasingly utilized tool of coercive policy, particularly by powerful states and international organizations against weaker, developing states. This makes the identification and clarification of existing and emerging rules of international law imposing limits upon the ability of states and international organizations to lawfully impose coercive economic sanctions, an important part of the development of a more mature and equitable international legal system. This chapter will focus on two main areas of customary international legal obligation, the sources of which impose limits on the application of coercive international economic sanctions by states and international organizations, including the U.N. Security Council. The first is the general international law principle of economic non-coercion, and the second is international human rights law.