Secondary Economic Sanctions: Three Entries for the Elgar Encyclopedia of International Economic Law

Abstract

Secondary economic sanctions target third-party states, companies, and individuals not directly connected to the primary sanctioned state, and typically not involved in the unlawful or nefarious conduct that motivates the primary sanctions regime. They are designed to deter engagement with the primary target state, and are thus argued to be necessary to make the sanctions regime more effective—but secondary sanctions raise complex legal questions. This essay provides a brief overview of sanctions regimes and mechanisms before analyzing how autonomous secondary sanctions particularly test limits around jurisdiction, human rights, and expropriation principles, as well as examining whether justifications may be available for otherwise unlawful secondary sanctions. Though they may be promoted on rule of law grounds, autonomous secondary sanctions may pose a risk of undermining international law in their application.

Keywords: economic sanctions, targeted sanctions, secondary sanctions, human rights law, countermeasures, international law, extraterritorial jurisdiction

JEL Classification: k33, k42, k20