Compare cases
Trade and supply restrictions
Compare the recorded objectives, mechanisms and outcomes, then open the entry for its sources, target response and limitations. These summaries are the entry classifications, not a causal ranking or a fresh review of effectiveness. Target adaptation is described in the full entries and is not yet consistently coded as a separate comparison field.
| Case | Period | Stated objective | Targets | Mechanisms | Recorded outcome | Effectiveness and limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allied blockade of Germany (1914-1919) | 1914-08 to 1919-07 | Prevent commodities from reaching or leaving Germany and reduce the Central Powers' capacity to continue the war. | german empire | restriction, network control, blockade, physical interdiction | Imports and nutrition deteriorated severely; German adaptation prevented an early collapse; the blockade contributed to cumulative defeat and continued as leverage after the Armistice. | Major contributory effect, but neither independently war-winning nor separable from battlefield, agricultural, administrative and epidemiological shocks. |
| Allied continuation of the blockade of Germany after the armistice (1918-1919) | 1918-11-11 to 1919-07-12 | Preserve Allied leverage while the peace terms were negotiated and accepted, while permitting such provisioning as the Allies judged necessary. | german government, german economy | blockade, physical interdiction, restriction, conditionality | Controls were progressively adjusted as food arrangements took effect and were lifted after Germany ratified the Treaty of Versailles in July 1919. | The blockade preserved bargaining leverage, but its independent contribution to German acceptance and to civilian mortality cannot be isolated from military defeat, political collapse and severe post-war disruption. |
| Allied large-diameter pipe export restrictions against the Soviet Union (1962-1966) | 1962 to 1966 | Deny the Soviet Union large-diameter pipe regarded as strategically significant for oil-pipeline construction. | soviet union | restriction, market access, network control | National controls disrupted contracts and imposed delay, but implementation was uneven and Soviet production and alternative procurement reduced the constraint before policy relaxed. | Achieved temporary capability denial without preventing pipeline development; alliance disagreement and substitution limited durability. |
| Allied preclusive purchasing in neutral Europe (1941-1944) | 1941 to 1944 | Buy or otherwise close neutral supplies of strategic materials so they could not reach the German war economy. | nazi german government, german war economy | market operation, price leverage, restriction, market access | Allied purchases raised costs and absorbed supply, while negotiated restrictions and coercive pressure produced sharper reductions in strategic exports during 1944. | Purchasing contributed to denial but did not act alone; stockpiles, smuggling, substitution, diplomacy and the changing military balance shaped results. |
| Allied restrictions on Huawei in 5G networks (2018-present) | 2018-08-23 to present | Reduce national-security risk from high-risk suppliers in critical telecommunications networks | huawei, zte | restriction, market access, standard setting, network control | Several governments restricted Huawei or ZTE through different legal instruments, scopes and timetables; implementation remained incomplete or continuing in some jurisdictions | The measures reduced covered-vendor access in participating markets but did not create a universal exclusion regime |
| Anglo-French coercive opening of Qing China in the Second Opium War (1856-1860) | 1856-10 to 1860-10 | Secure redress and revised diplomatic and commercial relations with Qing China. | qing china | conditionality, market access, financing, physical interdiction | The 1858 treaties and 1860 conventions expanded foreign diplomatic, commercial and territorial privileges and imposed indemnities after renewed war. | Anglo-French force obtained the immediate concessions sought, but the settlement entrenched imperial intrusion and generated durable Chinese political grievance. |
| Anglo-Irish Economic War (1932-1938) | 1932 to 1938 | The United Kingdom sought payment or settlement of withheld financial transfers, while Ireland contested the obligation and sought greater policy and treaty autonomy | irish government, united kingdom government | restriction, market access, conditionality, price leverage | Three linked agreements in April 1938 settled specified financial claims for GBP 10 million, removed specified penal duties, revised trade treatment and transferred the Treaty Ports to Ireland | Britain imposed greater relative economic costs, but settlement outcomes were mixed across finance, trade, welfare, domestic politics and sovereignty |
| Ansar Allah attacks on Red Sea shipping (2023-present) | 2023-11-19 to present | Pressure Israel and its supporters over the Gaza war by attacking vessels described by Ansar Allah as linked to Israel or violating its declared restrictions. | merchant shipping, israel, coalition naval forces | physical interdiction, blockade, insurance, information | Attacks caused deaths, detention, ship losses and persistent rerouting; naval defence and strikes reduced some threats without ending the campaign, which had renewed by July 2026. | Effective in imposing commercial and naval costs and gaining attention, but evidence of compellent success against Israel or a durable closure of the route is weak. |
| Anti-apartheid sanctions and divestment against South Africa (1962-1994) | 1962-11-06 to 1994-05-25 | End apartheid and establish a non-racial democratic political order in South Africa. | apartheid government of south africa | market access, withdrawal, restriction, financing, network control | Apartheid ended through a negotiated democratic transition; international pressure was contributory, while its independent causal weight remains contested. | Politically and reputationally important, financially significant in the mid-1980s, but not a sole or cleanly isolable cause of regime transformation. |
| Arab League boycott of Israel and third-country firms (1945-present) | 1945 to present | Restrict economic relations with Israel and discourage foreign firms from contributing to or supporting the Israeli economy. | israel, israeli firms, third country firms | restriction, market access, network control, information | The boycott developed primary and extended tiers, influenced selected firm and market behaviour, provoked United States antiboycott law, and later eroded unevenly as members reached peace or normalisation agreements. | The instrument affected specific firms and sectors but enforcement varied by member and period; economy-wide damage and present coalition coherence are not established by a single reliable measure. |
| Arab oil embargo and production cuts (1973-1974) | 1973-10-17 to 1974-03-18 | Pressure states supporting Israel to change policy and support Israeli withdrawal from occupied Arab territories. | united states, netherlands, portugal, south africa | restriction, price leverage, market operation | Supply tightened, prices rose sharply and consuming states adjusted policy and allocation, but target-specific compellence and the contribution of each instrument remain contested. | The measures produced major market and political effects, although fungibility weakened targeted denial and no clean causal line proves full satisfaction of the declared conditions. |
| Arab oil embargo and production interruption during the Six-Day War (1967) | 1967-06 to 1967-09-01 | Punish and pressure governments believed to support Israel during the June 1967 war | united states, united kingdom, west germany | restriction, withdrawal, price leverage, market operation | Initial supply and price disruption was absorbed through substitution and reallocation, national restrictions eased on different schedules, and the target governments did not make the demanded policy change | Failed at political compellence, imposed short-term market costs and material fiscal costs on participating exporters |
| ASML and the Netherlands-Japan lithography alignment (2019-2023) | 2019 to 2023-09-01 | Control exports of specified advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment to reduce national and international security risks and military-use exposure. | china | market access, restriction, network control | The Netherlands and Japan adopted national controls in 2023; later Dutch and United States amendments widened coverage, while licensing, sales and Chinese adaptation continued. | Effective at creating an aligned licensing barrier over leading equipment, but the long-run effect on Chinese capability, substitution and production remains unresolved. |
| Attacks on Gulf shipping and United States reflagging during the Tanker War (1984-1988) | 1984-03 to 1988-08 | Iraq and Iran sought to damage the other's war-financing and external support, while the United States sought to protect reflagged shipping and freedom of navigation. | iran linked shipping, gulf shipping, attacking forces | physical interdiction, insurance, blockade, information | Repeated attacks damaged ships and raised risk, but oil continued to flow; United States reflagging and escorts protected Kuwaiti trade while drawing Washington into direct naval combat with Iran. | Maritime attacks imposed costs and widened the war but did not close the Gulf or stop aggregate oil exports; escort and retaliation reduced some threats at material escalation risk. |
| Belarus sanctions, potash controls and relief (2020-present) | 2020-08-09 to present | Respond to repression, the diversion of a civilian flight and Belarusian support for Russia's aggression by restricting state-linked revenue and access | belarus, belaruskali, belarusian potash company | restriction, asset control, market access, withdrawal, network control | Potash logistics and market access were disrupted and rerouted through Russia, political compellence was not achieved, and the United States authorised then removed core potash entities while European Union product restrictions remained | Significant route and compliance effects but no demonstrated political compellence; revenue effects diminished as exports recovered and the United States perimeter changed |
| Belt and Road Initiative as an economic statecraft campaign (2013-present) | 2013 to present | Improve infrastructure connectivity, trade, investment and policy coordination across participating economies. | participating governments, public authorities, project sponsors | provision, financing, standard setting, dependency | A large global portfolio of completed, restructured, delayed and cancelled projects with no single debt or political outcome. | Effective at expanding physical and institutional connectivity in some corridors; strategic leverage and development returns remain project-specific and contested. |
| Bengal famine and British denial policies (1942-1944) | 1942-04 to 1944 | Deny rice stocks and water transport to a possible Japanese invasion of coastal Bengal | imperial japan | withdrawal, restriction, asset control, physical interdiction | Denial measures impaired assets and livelihoods in coastal districts during a wider wartime food crisis that developed into catastrophic famine and excess mortality | No Japanese invasion tested the denial objective; the policy imposed documented civilian costs, while its share of total famine causation remains disputed |
| Black Tom explosion and German sabotage in the neutral United States (1915-1917) | 1915-01-26 to 1917-04-06 | Disrupt production and shipment of war supplies from the neutral United States to Germany's enemies | allied war supply, united kingdom, france, russian empire | physical interdiction, network control | Black Tom and Kingsland were destroyed, the wider supply system continued, immediate attribution remained uncertain, and an international claims process held Germany responsible in 1939 | Achieved destructive tactical effects but did not materially stop Allied supply and generated long-term legal, political and counterintelligence costs |
| BNP Paribas sanctions prosecution and dollar-clearing restrictions (2014-2015) | 2014-06-30 to 2015-12-31 | Punish and remediate deliberate violations of United States sanctions law, preserve sanctions enforcement and deter comparable conduct by financial institutions. | bnp paribas | restriction, network control, asset control | BNP Paribas entered guilty pleas, received a federal sentence including USD 8.9736 billion in forfeiture and fine, accepted coordinated regulatory penalties and remediation, and served a one-year direct-clearing restriction for specified business lines. | The case achieved conviction, payment, operational restriction and compliance remediation; broader effects on global de-risking and geopolitical payment diversification are plausible but multi-causal and not measured by the case documents alone. |
| Bretton Woods settlement (1944) | 1944 to 1944 | Create institutions for exchange-rate stability, payments adjustment, reconstruction and development after the Second World War. | participating and prospective member governments | provision, financing, standard setting | Agreement on the IMF and IBRD Articles in 1944, followed by ratification, entry into force and institutional operations after the conference. | Built durable monetary and development institutions, although the par-value system and gold convertibility later ended and governance remained contested. |
| British blockade of Greece and the Don Pacifico affair (1850) | 1850-01 to 1851-07 | Obtain redress for a bundle of British and Ionian claims against Greece. | greek government | blockade, physical interdiction, asset control | Greek shipping was released after French mediation and negotiated settlements; Pacifico's disputed document claim was later largely rejected, with GBP 150 recommended for inconvenience and expense. | The operation secured negotiated redress but imposed broad commercial costs, produced allied resistance and did not validate Pacifico's largest claim. |
| British blockade of the United States during the War of 1812 (1812-1815) | 1812-12-26 to 1815-02-17 | Restrict United States naval and commercial use of the Atlantic coast and bring pressure on the government during war | united states, united states commerce, united states navy | blockade, physical interdiction, restriction | Overseas trade and customs receipts contracted sharply, ships were contained or captured, regional commerce adapted unevenly, and the United States faced severe fiscal pressure before peace | Operationally and economically effective, but its independent contribution to the peace settlement and fulfilment of British war aims remains contested |
| British Ministry of Economic Warfare campaign against Germany (1939-1945) | 1939-09-03 to 1945-05-23 | Weaken Germany's capacity to wage war by restricting access to imports, finance, shipping and strategic commodities. | germany, axis war economy | restriction, insurance, asset control, network control, information, blockade, physical interdiction | The campaign constrained selected inputs and networks, with effectiveness varying sharply by phase, commodity and interaction with military events. | Material but not independently decisive; early circumvention and territorial supply gains gave way to tighter constraints as Allied power expanded. |
| China's gallium and germanium export-control campaign (2023-present) | 2023-07-03 to present | Safeguard Chinese national security and interests and fulfil non-proliferation obligations through licensing of specified dual-use items. | foreign importers, united states | restriction, network control, conditionality | Licensing remains in force; the United States-specific presumption of denial operated from December 2024 to November 2025 and is suspended until 27 November 2026; trade and prices adjusted without a verified economy-wide production shutdown. | Effective in demonstrating and retaining discretionary control, with realised denial and compellent effects uncertain and diversification incentives increasing. |
| China's informal economic pressure on South Korea over THAAD (2016-2017) | 2016-07-08 to 2017-10-31 | Oppose and reverse deployment of the THAAD missile-defence system on the Korean Peninsula. | south korea | restriction, market access, withdrawal, information | South Korean tourism and exposed firms incurred material losses and the governments stabilised relations in late 2017, but THAAD remained deployed and restrictions eased unevenly. | Economically costly and politically salient, but unsuccessful at compelling removal of the system; stronger as punishment and deterrent signalling than compellence. |
| China's informal restrictions on Norwegian salmon after the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize (2010-2016) | 2010-10-08 to 2016-12-19 | Chinese authorities publicly presented relevant import administration as sanitary, veterinary and food-safety regulation rather than as an economic sanction. | norway, norwegian salmon exporters | restriction, market access, information | Direct Norwegian salmon access and recorded market share fell sharply while trade adapted through product and route substitution; bilateral relations normalised in December 2016 and trade negotiations and technical seafood access resumed in 2017. | The restrictions disrupted a targeted channel and signalled political displeasure, but diversion limited aggregate industry damage and the evidence does not establish that Norway changed the underlying policy China opposed. |
| China's rare-earth export licensing and magnet supply shock (2025-present) | 2025-04-04 to present | Safeguard national security and interests and fulfil non-proliferation and other international obligations through export control of specified dual-use rare-earth items. | foreign importers of controlled rare earth items, downstream manufacturers | restriction, market access, dependency, network control | The April controls generated licence-dependent supply disruption and accelerated foreign resilience measures; a broader October package was suspended until 10 November 2026 while the April licensing regime remained in force. | The controls demonstrated immediate leverage over exposed supply chains and induced negotiation and diversification, but durable strategic effect depends on licence administration, substitution and the rate at which alternative capacity becomes commercially viable. |
| China's trade pressure on Lithuania over the Taiwanese Representative Office (2021-2025) | 2021-11-18 to 2025-11-28 | Induce Lithuania to correct the decision to permit an office bearing the name Taiwanese and reaffirm China's one-China principle. | lithuania, european union | restriction, market access, withdrawal, dependency, network control | Lithuania kept the office open; direct trade fell sharply during the acute phase; relevant trade later resumed; the European Union terminated DS610 in November 2025 without a merits ruling. | Limited for the immediate compellent objective; sharp trade disruption is documented, while total economic loss, state direction of all measures and causes of recovery remain unresolved. |
| China's trade restrictions on Australia and alleged economic coercion (2020-2024) | 2020-05-12 to 2024-12-20 | Apply trade-remedy, quarantine, customs and regulatory rules to specified Australian products. | australia | restriction, market access, withdrawal, conditionality | Targeted sectors suffered uneven losses and diversion costs; Australia did not reverse the principal policies at issue; the major impediments were removed by December 2024 through reviews, settlements and bilateral normalisation. | Limited for compellence, material at sector level and unresolved for wider deterrent signalling; aggregate resilience does not erase product-level costs. |
| Chinese anti-American boycott (1905-1906) | 1905-05 to 1906 | Secure fairer treatment of Chinese travellers and changes to United States exclusion administration and treaty terms. | united states government, american commercial interests | withdrawal, information, market access | The boycott faded during 1906, some administrative amelioration followed and statutory exclusion remained. | Commercial effects were uneven and legislative compellence failed, while the scale of administrative concession and longer demonstration effect remain debated. |
| Chinese anti-Japanese boycott after the Mukden Incident (1931-1932) | 1931-09 to 1932-05 | Resist Japanese aggression through refusal to buy, handle or finance Japanese goods. | japan, japanese commercial interests | withdrawal, market access, information | Japanese trade faced disruption and Chinese mobilisation expanded, but Japanese military expansion continued and fighting broke out at Shanghai. | Commercial costs and mobilisation are established in broad outline, while deterrence failed and the boycott's contribution to military escalation remains contested. |
| Chinese graphite and antimony export controls (2023-present) | 2023-12-01 to present | Protect national security and fulfil non-proliferation obligations through export licensing | global importers, united states | restriction, market access, information | Product licensing continued, while Announcement 72 suspended only paragraph 2 of Announcement 46 through 27 November 2026; the military-user and military-use prohibition was outside that suspension | The controls created approval risk and supply-chain uncertainty, but durable substitution and price effects remain unsettled |
| Chinese import restrictions on Taiwanese fruit, fish and food (2021-2022) | 2021-03 to 2022-12 | Enforce plant-health, food-safety and registration requirements on specified Taiwanese products. | taiwan, taiwanese exporters | restriction, standard setting, conditionality, market access | China suspended several fruit, fish and processed-food import channels; Taiwan diverted some sales and challenged the measures, while China later allowed partial product and supplier resumptions. | The restrictions imposed concentrated losses on affected producers but did not produce an observable change in Taiwan's cross-strait policy. |
| Chinese restrictions on Philippine bananas during the Scarborough Shoal standoff (2012) | 2012-04 to 2012 | Enforce plant-health requirements and protect Chinese agriculture from pests | philippines | restriction, market access, information | Philippine banana shipments faced disruption, Manila maintained its legal position and China retained effective maritime control of the shoal | Commercial costs are plausible, but policy compellence and the restriction's independent contribution to the maritime outcome are not established |
| CHIPS Act and the semiconductor subsidy race (2022-present) | 2022 to present | Expand secure domestic semiconductor capacity, research and workforce while protecting national-security technology. | semiconductor manufacturers and supply chain firms | provision, restriction, subsidy, standard setting | Multiple jurisdictions created subsidy and guardrail programmes; announced facilities, awards, construction and disbursement remain at different stages. | The programmes have redirected investment, but cost, additional capacity, duplication and long-term competitiveness remain unsettled. |
| Coalition sanctions and export controls against Russia after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine (2022-present) | 2022-02-24 to present | Impose costs, constrain Russia's military and industrial capacity, reduce war revenue, support Ukraine and pressure Russia to end its aggression. | russia | restriction, withdrawal, asset control, network control, price leverage, market access | The campaign has immobilised assets, restricted Western finance and technology and raised procurement and energy-trade costs; Russia adapted through controls, war spending and non-coalition trade; the war and campaign remain active. | Material but uneven at instrument level and unresolved at strategic level; no single aggregate indicator establishes either success or failure. |
| Confederate cotton withholding and King Cotton diplomacy (1861-1863) | 1861 to 1863 | Use European dependence on slave-produced southern cotton to obtain diplomatic recognition or intervention for the Confederacy. | united kingdom, france | withdrawal, restriction, price leverage, information | Withholding reduced early exports but did not secure European recognition; stocks, substitution, diplomacy and the Union blockade altered the pressure before Confederate cotton finance expanded. | Failed at political compellence and imposed large costs on the sender, while contributing to a severe but adaptable European supply shock. |
| Corporate withdrawal and private self-sanctioning in Russia (2022-2023) | 2022-02-24 to 2023-12-31 | No aggregate objective applies; individual firms variously cited legal compliance, condemnation of the invasion, employee safety, operational constraints, reputation and commercial risk. | russia, russian market, russian war economy | withdrawal, restriction, information, ownership | Large numbers of firms announced some curtailment, but completed divestment was slower and definition-dependent; many sold operations that continued under Russian ownership, while Russian measures altered exit timing and terms. | Private withdrawal amplified compliance pressure and signalling but was uneven, often reversible and an unreliable substitute for state action; its effect on Russian capacity depended on sector, transaction form and post-sale continuity. |
| Disruption and contested control of the Strait of Hormuz during the 2026 Iran war (2026-present) | 2026-02-28 to present | Protect or restore maritime transit on the United States side and use resistance, deterrence and control of the corridor on the Iranian side, as described in each party's official account. | commercial shipping, iran | restriction, network control, blockade, physical interdiction | Merchant traffic fell sharply and changed composition across multiple conflict phases; ships and seafarers were attacked; military and diplomatic action continued; durable control or normal transit was not established by 29 July 2026. | The disruption imposed immediate global shipping and energy costs but had not produced a settled strategic outcome by the audit date. |
| Dollar diplomacy in Central America and the Caribbean (1909-1913) | 1909 to 1913 | Promote stability and United States commercial interests through private capital and financial supervision. | nicaragua, honduras, other borrowing states | financing, conditionality, ownership, physical interdiction | Loans and customs arrangements were implemented unevenly, while military intervention remained integral in Nicaragua. | Financial control serviced selected obligations but did not deliver durable political stability. |
| DRC minerals-for-security agreement (2025) | 2025 to present | Link investment in Congolese critical-minerals value chains with security, peace and regional economic integration. | prospective public and private investors, conflict parties in separate peace process | market access, financing, guarantee | No single executed instrument titled or legally constituting a DRC minerals-for-security agreement was established by 30 July 2026; separate peace, partnership and private investment records exist. | Too early to assess, and the claimed bargain must not be treated as one binding agreement. |
| Dutch intervention in Nexperia and Chinese export restrictions (2025-present) | 2025-09-30 to present | Preserve semiconductor capability and security of supply in Europe, and regulate exports from Nexperia's Chinese operations. | nexperia, nexperia china, wingtech | restriction, ownership, network control, market access | The Netherlands invoked and later suspended a company-specific ministerial order, China applied and partly exempted a company-specific export control, and corporate proceedings continued. | The measures demonstrated bilateral leverage over one distributed firm, while long-term governance and supply effects remain unresolved. |
| ECOWAS sanctions against Mali (2022) and Niger (2023-2024) | 2022-01-09 to 2024-02-24 | Restore agreed constitutional transition timetables in Mali and the deposed constitutional government in Niger. | mali transition authorities, niger transition authorities | restriction, asset control, market access, withdrawal, network control | Mali adopted a 24-month transition timetable before broad measures were lifted; Niger did not restore President Mohamed Bazoum, and broad measures were lifted in February 2024 on stated humanitarian grounds. | The Mali campaign coincided with a negotiated timetable but does not establish sanctions as the sole cause; the Niger campaign failed on its principal restoration demand and imposed extensive civilian costs amid several concurrent shocks. |
| Egyptian debt crisis, international financial control and British occupation (1876-1882) | 1876-05-02 to 1882-09-13 | Reorganise Egyptian public debt, secure assigned revenues and restore regular debt service. | egyptian government | asset control, conditionality, financing, dependency, ownership | International fiscal supervision expanded, Ismail was deposed, Egyptian political opposition grew and Britain occupied Egypt after defeating Urabi's forces in 1882. | Creditor control improved the priority accorded to debt service but eroded Egyptian sovereignty, intensified distributive conflict and formed one part of a multicausal path to occupation. |
| Enforcement against diversion of controlled Nvidia AI chips (2024-present) | 2024-10 to present | Prevent controlled advanced-computing items from reaching prohibited destinations or end users and enforce the Export Administration Regulations. | alleged diversion networks, export control violators | restriction, market access, network control, physical interdiction | United States authorities charged several defendants, secured guilty pleas in part of one scheme and seized controlled hardware, while licensing policy changed prospectively in 2026. | Enforcement disrupted identified channels and demonstrated the reach of export controls, but the scale of undetected diversion and its effect on aggregate computing access remain unresolved. |
| EU countervailing duties on battery electric vehicles from China (2023-present) | 2023-10-04 to 2026-10-17 | Counter injury the Commission attributed to subsidised imports of new battery electric vehicles from China. | chinese bev exporters, government of china | restriction, market access, standard setting, price leverage | Definitive company-specific duties entered into force on 30 October 2024; a Volkswagen Anhui price undertaking was accepted in February 2026; China continues to challenge the measure at the WTO. | The instruments impose duties or undertaking conditions on covered imports; effects on prices, industry, consumers and the transition require separate assessment, and the WTO case record inspected on 17 October 2026 records no merits ruling. |
| EU country-level anti-circumvention export restrictions concerning Kyrgyzstan (2026-present) | 2026-04-24 to 2026-07-29 | Prevent two categories of Union-origin goods from reaching Russia through Kyrgyzstan and strengthen enforcement of EU export restrictions. | kyrgyz republic, russian military industrial complex | restriction, market access, network control | Direct and indirect exports to Kyrgyzstan of the two Annex XXXIII product categories, with associated services and finance, became prohibited; later Kyrgyz entity listings remained legally separate. | The measure created a clear denial rule, but durable effects on diversion cannot yet be established without product-level trade and enforcement data. |
| EU gas-demand reduction, storage and LNG diversification (2022-2023) | 2022-05-18 to 2023-12-31 | Reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels while maintaining EU supply security and accelerating the energy transition. | european union energy system, russian gas dependence | restriction, provision, financing, market operation, network control | EU gas use and Russian imports fell sharply, storage remained high and LNG and non-Russian pipeline supply gained share, at substantial industrial, household and global-market cost. | Effective in preserving winter supply and reducing Russian leverage through 2023, but aided by mild weather, lower demand, global LNG availability and costly industrial adjustment. |
| European banana regime and United States retaliation (1993-2001) | 1993-07 to 2001-07 | Preserve European banana preferences and licensing arrangements on one side and obtain compliance with trade obligations and market access on the other. | banana import regime, selected european exports | restriction, market access, standard setting | WTO findings and authorised United States retaliation led to 2001 understandings and a transitional regime, while residual banana disputes continued. | Rules channelled and capped retaliation but compliance required repeated proceedings and negotiation over several years. |
| European naval blockade and debt enforcement against Venezuela (1902-1903) | 1902-12-09 to 1903-02-13 | Compel Venezuela to settle sovereign debts and other claims advanced by the blockading powers. | venezuela | blockade, physical interdiction, asset control | The blockade ended under the February 1903 protocols, Venezuela pledged 30 per cent of specified customs revenues, claims entered commission processes, and the 1904 tribunal awarded preferential payment to the blockading powers. | The operation secured a settlement and payment preference, but generated legal and political backlash and does not establish that armed collection was efficient, legitimate or durable. |
| First Opium War and the coerced opening of Qing China (1839-1842) | 1839-09-04 to 1842-08-29 | Obtain redress, diplomatic standing and secure commercial access for British subjects and trade. | qing china | market access, restriction, blockade, physical interdiction | Britain defeated Qing forces and imposed the Treaty of Nanking; supplementary arrangements in 1843 widened commercial and jurisdictional privileges. | Militarily and immediately effective in compelling treaty terms, with long-run consequences extending well beyond the formal 1842 settlement. |
| French recognition indemnity imposed on Haiti (1825-1947) | 1825-04-17 to 1947 | Secure compensation for former French colonists in return for recognition of Haitian independence and reduced tariff treatment | haiti | conditionality, financing, blockade, market access | Haiti accepted the indemnity under naval pressure, renegotiated it in 1838, completed indemnity payments in 1883 and serviced related refinancing obligations into the twentieth century | France obtained formal compensation and durable financial influence at severe cost to Haitian fiscal autonomy and development capacity |
| G7 oil price cap and EU embargo on Russian oil (2022-present) | 2022-12-05 to present | Reduce Russia's oil revenue while preserving the supply of Russian oil to the world market and limiting energy-price disruption. | russia | restriction, insurance, price leverage, network control | The embargo redirected Russian oil trade and the cap constrained coalition services; Russia built alternative logistics, and enforcement and revenue effects remain contested. | The combined measures imposed discounts, costs and market redirection, but the marginal effect of the cap varies by period and cannot be separated from embargo, market and enforcement effects without explicit method. |
| General License X and Iranian oil sanctions relief (2026) | 2026-06-21 to 2026-07-17 | temporarily authorise specified Iranian-origin petroleum transactions | iran | market access, restriction, withdrawal | broad authorisation revoked and replaced by a ten-day wind-down | too brief and insufficiently documented for a durable effectiveness finding |
| German reparations and the Franco-Belgian occupation of the Ruhr (1919-1925) | 1919-06-28 to 1925-08-25 | Obtain reparation for specified war damage and enforce German delivery and payment obligations. | germany | conditionality, asset control, market operation, restriction, physical interdiction | German passive resistance ended in September 1923, currency stabilisation followed, the Dawes settlement restructured enforcement in 1924 and occupation forces evacuated in 1925. | Coercion obtained some deliveries and imposed severe costs but did not produce a durable payment settlement without external finance and negotiated restructuring. |
| German unrestricted submarine campaign against Allied commerce (1915-1918) | 1915-02-04 to 1918-11-11 | Destroy sufficient shipping capacity to force Britain out of the war before United States intervention could become decisive. | united kingdom, allied powers, allied and neutral shipping | blockade, physical interdiction, restriction | Shipping losses rose sharply in 1917, convoy and other measures reduced the threat, Britain remained in the war and the United States entered as a belligerent. | Tactically destructive and initially close to its tonnage targets, but strategically unsuccessful and politically counterproductive. |
| IMF structural adjustment conditionality (1980s-1990s) | 1980 to 1999 | Restore external viability and macroeconomic stability while protecting the revolving resources of the institutions. | individual borrower governments | provision, conditionality, financing | Numerous country programmes exchanged financing and debt treatment for policy conditions; results differed sharply across countries and periods. | Macroeconomic, growth and institutional effects are mixed and programme-specific; a universal coercion or warfare verdict is not supported. |
| India-Nepal transit restrictions and disputed blockade episodes (1989-1990; 2015-2016) | 1989-03 to 2016-02 | Resolve treaty and security disputes in 1989; India denied imposing a blockade in 2015 while Nepal alleged coercive restriction | nepal | restriction, market access, dependency, network control | Transit normalised after political change in 1990 and after protest and diplomatic de-escalation in 2016; attribution and causal effect differ sharply between the episodes | The episodes exposed Nepal's severe transit vulnerability but produced contested and costly political outcomes |
| India-Pakistan bilateral trade restrictions (2019-present) | 2019-02-16 to present | Signal political condemnation and restrict bilateral commerce after the Pulwama attack, the change in Jammu and Kashmir's constitutional status and the 2025 Pahalgam attack | pakistan, india | restriction, withdrawal, market access | Formal bilateral trade contracted sharply; India prohibited direct and indirect imports of Pakistan-origin goods in May 2025, while Pakistan expanded restrictions on transit involving India | The measures sustained political signalling but did not produce a demonstrated change in the opposing state's core policy |
| Indonesia nickel export ban and downstreaming (2014-2020) | 2014 to 2020 | Retain nickel for domestic processing, increase value added and develop an integrated downstream industry. | foreign nickel ore buyers, mining and processing investors | market access, restriction, dependency | Domestic processing and investment expanded, while a WTO panel found the challenged export ban and domestic processing requirement inconsistent with GATT Article XI. | Effective in attracting processing investment, but causal attribution, fiscal returns, concentration and long-run competitiveness remain contested. |
| Iranian gas-for-gold scheme and the Halkbank prosecution (2012-2026) | 2012 to 2026-06-17 | Preserve access to Iranian petroleum revenue while United States authorities sought to enforce restrictions on that revenue | united states sanctions regime, iran | market operation, network control, information, market access | Individual defendants pleaded guilty or were convicted; Halkbank entered a deferred-prosecution agreement and the court dismissed the indictment with prejudice on 17 June 2026 | The network moved substantial value before enforcement, while the institutional case ended without a conviction, admission of criminal wrongdoing or monetary penalty against Halkbank |
| Iranian oil nationalisation and British oil embargo (1951-1953) | 1951-03-15 to 1953-08-19 | Secure compensation and acceptable operating arrangements after nationalisation while preventing Iran from selling oil claimed by Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. | iran, national iranian oil company | restriction, withdrawal, asset control, insurance, market access | Established Iranian oil exports and revenues collapsed, but the embargo did not reverse nationalisation; Mosaddeq was removed by a separate 1953 coup and a new consortium settlement followed in 1954. | The campaign was effective at revenue denial and market exclusion but ineffective as stand-alone compellence, while adaptation limited costs to major consuming states. |
| Iranian rial depreciation during the 2012 sanctions escalation | 2011-12 to 2013 | Reduce Iranian petroleum revenue and financial access in support of nuclear-policy demands | iran | restriction, market access, network control, market operation | The open-market rial depreciated sharply, inflation accelerated and Iran expanded exchange controls; the outcome reflected sanctions and domestic policy together | Sanctions materially tightened foreign-exchange access, but no single measure or currency movement can be assigned exclusive causal weight |
| Iranian sanctions-evasion networks (2012-present) | 2012 to present | Preserve Iranian access to export revenue, imports, procurement and strategic finance under sanctions while enforcement states sought to deny those channels | sanctions controls, iranian state and proxy networks | network control, market operation, information, financing | Documented networks sustained defined oil, trade, procurement and payment flows, while repeated enforcement disrupted individual facilitators without ending adaptation | Modular evasion improved resilience but added cost, opacity and dependence on foreign intermediaries |
| Iraqi destruction of Kuwait's oil infrastructure, 1991 | 1991-01-22 to 1991-11-06 | "No sufficiently precise public Iraqi statement is established in the current source set for the full destruction campaign." | kuwait | physical interdiction | "Hundreds of wells were damaged or ignited, production and infrastructure were severely disrupted, fires continued for months and extensive environmental harm and compensation claims followed." | "Highly effective in immediate destruction and long-tail environmental cost; no durable political compellence is demonstrated." |
| Japan's rare earth diversification as counter-coercion (2010-2026) | 2010 to 2026 | Secure stable rare earth supply through diversification, stockpiling, recycling and reduced use | rare earth supply dependency | financing, subsidy, dependency | Material diversification and resilience gains, with continuing exposure to Chinese midstream and magnet supply | Substantially effective but incomplete |
| Japan-South Korea export-control dispute (2019-2023) | 2019-07-01 to 2023-07 | Japan cited export-control administration and trust; South Korea treated the measures as retaliation and pursued restoration and supply-chain resilience | south korea, japan | restriction, market access, information, standard setting | Both governments restored preferred export-control treatment in 2023 and South Korea suspended its WTO complaint after policy dialogue | The dispute imposed adjustment costs and encouraged diversification, but did not establish durable supply denial |
| JCPOA sanctions relief and snapback (2015-2018) | 2015-07-14 to 2018-11-05 | exchange nuclear constraints and verification for sanctions relief | iran | restriction, withdrawal, market access | initial relief followed by United States withdrawal and reimposition | mixed and subsequently reversed |
| Jefferson's Embargo Act (1807-1809) | 1807-12-22 to 1809-03-01 | Protect United States neutral rights and avoid war by withholding American commerce from Britain and France. | united kingdom, france | restriction, market access | United States overseas commerce contracted sharply and enforcement provoked evasion and resistance, but Britain and France did not concede the central American demands before the embargo was replaced. | The policy demonstrated coercive resolve but failed at compellence and imposed large domestic costs. |
| Lancashire cotton famine during the American Civil War (1861-1865) | 1861 to 1865 | The Union sought to blockade the Confederacy, while Confederate leaders withheld cotton in part to induce European intervention. | confederate states, united kingdom government | blockade, withdrawal, restriction, market operation | Lancashire mills contracted and relief expanded before wartime supply, substitution and the return of American cotton changed the market again. | Cotton withholding did not secure British intervention; blockade, inventories, prior overproduction and substitution all shaped the industrial outcome. |
| League of Nations Article 16 threats in the Albanian border crisis (1921) and Greek-Bulgarian incident (1925) | 1921-11 to 1925-12 | Halt cross-border military action, secure withdrawal and restore the disputed frontiers through League procedure. | kingdom of serbs croats and slovenes, greece | restriction, withdrawal, financing, information | Forces withdrew in both episodes without Article 16 sanctions being imposed; Greece was later ordered to pay an indemnity after the 1925 incident. | The threat may have reinforced compliance, but diplomatic pressure, military imbalance, credit exposure and League procedure cannot be separated cleanly. |
| League of Nations sanctions against Italy over Ethiopia (1935-1936) | 1935-10-07 to 1936-07-15 | Induce Italy to end its resort to war against Ethiopia and uphold the League Covenant. | italy | restriction, financing, market access, asset control | The measures constrained selected trade and finance but did not prevent Italian conquest; the League lifted them after annexation. | The package imposed costs but failed at compellence because coverage, participation, timing and escalation tolerance remained limited. |
| Lend-Lease (1941-1945) | 1941 to 1945 | Supply materiel and services to countries whose defence the President deemed vital to the defence of the United States. | united kingdom, soviet union, free france, china, other allied recipients | provision, financing, guarantee | The United States delivered large-scale aid through September 1945, followed by termination and separate settlement arrangements. | A major contribution to Allied logistics and coalition endurance; the precise marginal effect by theatre and recipient remains debated. |
| Libya sanctions, freeze and unfreezing (1986-2011) | 1986-01-07 to 2011 | Obtain compliance over terrorism cases, weapons programmes and civilian protection. | libya gaddafi era | restriction, asset control, market access | UN sanctions were suspended and terminated after negotiated steps, then new measures were imposed during the 2011 conflict. | Sanctions contributed to bargaining, but their independent causal weight remains contested. |
| Marshall Plan and counterpart-fund leverage (1948-1952) | 1948 to 1952 | Restore European production, financial stability and trade through United States assistance and European cooperation. | western european recipient governments | provision, conditionality, financing, market access | Assistance and counterpart-fund arrangements supported reconstruction and institution-building across participating states; Soviet rejection reinforced bloc division. | Strong institutional and political effects are established, while the programme's independent contribution to output recovery remains contested. |
| Meng Wanzhou proceedings and Chinese detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor (2018-2021) | 2018-12-01 to 2021-09-25 | The United States sought Meng Wanzhou's extradition on fraud charges, Canada executed its treaty obligations, and China said its proceedings against Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor concerned national security. | meng wanzhou, michael kovrig, michael spavor, canadian government | restriction, market access, withdrawal | Meng entered a deferred prosecution agreement and the Canadian extradition proceeding ended on 24 September 2021; Kovrig and Spavor were released and returned to Canada the following day. | The closely timed releases support an inference of linkage but do not constitute an adjudicated finding that the proceedings formed a negotiated exchange. |
| Napoleon's Continental System (1806-1814) | 1806-11-21 to 1814 | Retaliate against British maritime measures and exclude British people, goods and communications from French-controlled and allied Europe. | united kingdom | restriction, market access, blockade, physical interdiction | The system disrupted trade and imposed uneven costs but leaked through smuggling, neutral routes and licences; Britain adapted; allied burdens and enforcement demands weakened the French imperial system. | Operationally disruptive but strategically unsuccessful, with the marginal effect of French measures difficult to separate from British blockade and general war. |
| Nazi exploitation of occupied European economies (1939-1945) | 1939-09-01 to 1945-05-08 | Supply and finance the German war effort from conquered territories and reorder occupied Europe under Nazi rule | occupied european states, occupied european populations | asset control, ownership, restriction, dependency, withdrawal | Germany extracted substantial resources and labour, while occupation policies caused dispossession, deprivation, forced labour, mass death and long-term economic damage across occupied Europe | Materially supported German war finance and production but produced highly unequal returns, destruction, resistance and catastrophic civilian harm |
| Nigeria's land-border closure (2019-2020) | 2019-08-20 to 2020-12-16 | Enforce Nigerian import restrictions and reduce smuggling of rice, arms, drugs and subsidised petrol across land borders. | cross border traders, smugglers, importers | restriction, market access, physical interdiction, withdrawal | The closure interrupted formal land trade and raised costs before Nigeria reopened four crossings in December 2020. | The measure increased enforcement pressure but also raised domestic prices and regional costs; the evidence does not show durable elimination of informal trade. |
| Nitrate control and fiscal effects of the War of the Pacific (1879-1884) | 1879-04-05 to 1884-04-04 | Defend Chilean treaty and commercial claims and defeat Peru and Bolivia in the territorial conflict. | peruvian government, bolivian government | physical interdiction, ownership, restriction, market access | Chile occupied nitrate territories, Peru ceded Tarapaca in 1883, and the 1884 truce left Chile controlling Bolivia's former littoral pending the 1904 settlement. | Resource control increased Chilean fiscal capacity, but the war cannot be reduced to a separable nitrate-control campaign. |
| OAS and United Nations sanctions against Haiti (1991-1994) | 1991-10 to 1994-10 | Restore Haiti's elected government and constitutional order after the September 1991 coup | haitian de facto authorities | restriction, asset control, blockade, market access | Sanctions escalated and were later combined with a credible threat of force; President Jean-Bertrand Aristide returned in October 1994 | Economic pressure imposed costs but cannot be isolated from diplomacy, internal repression and the United States-led threat of military intervention |
| OAS sanctions against the Dominican Republic (1960-1962) | 1960-08-20 to 1962-01-04 | Respond collectively to the Organization of American States finding concerning Dominican aggression against Venezuela and remove a danger to hemispheric peace and security. | dominican republic, trujillo government | withdrawal, restriction, market access | Member states broke diplomatic relations and restricted specified exports; the Organization of American States lifted the measures on 4 January 1962 after a political transition. | The measures increased isolation and constrained selected imports, but the record does not establish that sanctions caused Trujillo's assassination or the subsequent transition. |
| Oil-for-Food Programme (1995-2003) | 1995 to 2003 | Permit financed humanitarian imports while maintaining the Security Council sanctions regime imposed on Iraq. | iraq | provision, restriction, financing, asset control | The programme delivered large-scale civilian supplies but also enabled Iraqi manipulation, contractor kickbacks and serious administrative failures before ending on 21 November 2003. | Material humanitarian delivery was real, but weak counterparty and oversight controls reduced integrity and political legitimacy. |
| Operation Mongoose economic sabotage against Cuba (1961-1963) | 1961-11-30 to 1963-01 | Apply political, economic, psychological and covert pressure to undermine the Cuban government and create conditions for political change. | cuban government, cuban economy | physical interdiction, restriction, blockade | Numerous actions were proposed and some covert operations were attempted, but the programme did not remove the Cuban government and was reorganised after the missile crisis. | Documentary evidence establishes intent and planning more strongly than completed economic effect; proposed, authorised, attempted and completed actions must be scored separately. |
| Operation Safehaven (1944-1948) | 1944 to 1948 | identify and block German external assets and prevent financing of a post-war resurgence | nazi germany | asset control, information, restriction | partial identification and recovery with negotiated settlements | useful but incomplete due to secrecy, legal obstacles and competing Allied priorities |
| Pandemic export restrictions on medical goods and vaccines (2020-2021) | 2020-03 to 2021 | Preserve domestic access to scarce medical goods and vaccines during a public-health emergency | potential medical goods exports, foreign buyers | restriction, market access, network control | Numerous temporary controls and allocation measures altered trade and deliveries, then were modified or withdrawn as supply and policy changed | Some measures redirected or delayed individual shipments, but their aggregate effect on domestic availability, global health outcomes and later resilience policy requires measure-specific causal analysis |
| PLA encirclement exercises and Taiwan blockade scenarios (2022-2025) | 2022-08 to 2025-04 | Demonstrate joint military control, strike and encirclement capabilities while warning Taiwan and external supporters against moves Beijing characterises as separatist. | taiwan | information, physical interdiction, restriction, network control | China demonstrated and repeated encirclement, strike and control activities around Taiwan, but did not impose a sustained blockade, quarantine or inspection regime during the period. | The exercises strengthened signalling and operational familiarity; their effect on Taiwan's political decisions, commercial risk pricing or the feasibility of a future blockade remains contested. |
| Pressure, court action and transfer of CK Hutchison's Panama ports concessions (2025-present) | 2025-01-20 to 2026-08-20 | Apply Panamanian law to the Balboa and Cristobal concessions and protect the asserted strategic security of canal-adjacent infrastructure. | ck hutchison holdings, panama ports company | ownership, asset control, restriction, conditionality | Panama Ports Company lost operational control after a Supreme Court decision and state entry in February 2026; CK Hutchison reported commencement of separate treaty arbitration in August 2026, without an adjudicated outcome established here. | Panama changed operational control of the terminals, but the commercial, arbitral and strategic consequences remain unsettled and cannot be attributed to any single pressure campaign. |
| Qatar diplomatic and economic embargo (2017-2021) | 2017-06-05 to 2021-01-05 | Compel Qatar to change foreign, media, security and regional policies identified in the coalition's demands. | qatar | restriction, market access, network control, blockade | Qatar sustained core state functions and rerouted trade and transport; the parties restored relations at Al-Ula without public evidence of wholesale Qatari acceptance of the original demands. | The measures imposed adjustment costs and severed regional links but did not publicly secure the full compellent programme. |
| Reported Chinese rare earth shipment interruption to Japan (2010) | 2010-09 to 2010-12 | Administer export quotas and customs controls while conserving resources and enforcing environmental policy. | japan | restriction, dependency, market access, network control | Japanese importers experienced a documented disruption amid a wider quota and price shock; the captain was released but causal linkage is unproved; Japan accelerated diversification and demand reduction. | Tactical compellence is unproven and long-run leverage eroded as market and policy adaptation accelerated. |
| Russia's gas-for-roubles mechanism and pipeline supply reductions to Europe (2022) | 2022-03-31 to 2022-09-02 | Require buyers in designated unfriendly states to use a special Gazprombank payment procedure and protect receipt of gas revenues under foreign financial restrictions. | european union member states, european gas buyers | restriction, conditionality, dependency, network control, price leverage | Russia terminated or reduced multiple pipeline contracts and Nord Stream flows; European prices and adjustment costs rose sharply; no state left the sanctions coalition; Russian gas dependence fell structurally. | Material short-run disruption and price amplification, but limited compellence and severe long-run loss of Russian market share and leverage. |
| Russia's rouble defence and capital controls (2022) | 2022-02-28 to 2022-12 | Stabilise the rouble and domestic financial system after the February 2022 sanctions and reserve immobilisation. | russian financial system, foreign investors, russian exporters | market operation, restriction, asset control, network control | The rouble recovered its initial nominal loss and the banking system avoided an immediate collapse, while capital mobility and price discovery were heavily restricted. | The measures achieved near-term stabilisation but the exchange rate did not provide a free-market measure of economic health or sanctions effectiveness. |
| Russia-Ukraine gas supply and transit disputes (2006 and 2009) | 2006-01-01 to 2009-01-20 | Secure payment of disputed debts and replacement gas-price and transit terms while preventing unauthorised diversion of export gas. | ukraine | restriction, dependency, network control, price leverage | Short-term agreements restored supply in both crises; the 2009 interruption caused severe downstream shortages and produced a ten-year contract; political alignment did not reverse and European resilience policy accelerated. | Material for immediate contractual pressure but unproved as political compellence; transit disruption, reputational damage and diversification costs weakened longer-term leverage. |
| Russian blockade of Ukrainian grain exports and the Black Sea Grain Initiative (2022-2023) | 2022-02-24 to 2023-07-17 | Russia cited navigation security and unmet demands concerning Russian exports; the United Nations and Turkiye sought safe commercial carriage of food and fertiliser. | ukraine | restriction, insurance, blockade, physical interdiction | The Initiative moved 32.8 million tonnes before Russia withdrew; Ukraine later developed a separate route whose traffic and risk conditions continued to evolve. | The initial restrictions imposed major export and price costs; the Initiative and later Ukrainian adaptation restored substantial capacity without eliminating wartime risk. |
| Russian economic restrictions against Turkey after the Su-24 shootdown (2015-2016) | 2015-11-28 to 2016-12 | Protect Russian national security and apply special economic measures after the destruction of a Russian military aircraft. | turkish government, turkish exporters, turkish tourism sector | restriction, withdrawal, market access | The restrictions reduced Turkish access to Russian food, tourism, labour and contracting markets before diplomatic normalisation and staged relaxation during 2016. | The measures increased pressure during a broader diplomatic crisis, but their independent role in normalisation cannot be separated from security cooperation and high-level diplomacy. |
| Russian food-import countermeasures and import substitution (2014-present) | 2014-08-06 to present | Retaliate against states applying sanctions to Russia and protect Russian security through restrictions on specified agricultural imports. | sanctioning state exporters, russian import market | restriction, market access, subsidy, dependency | Covered imports shifted by product and origin, Russian output expanded in several sectors and consumers faced adjustment costs; Western sanctions policy did not change in response. | The measures supported adaptation and signalling more than compellence, while exchange rates, subsidies, investment, weather and world markets also shaped agricultural outcomes. |
| Russian grain and fertiliser statecraft during the war against Ukraine (2022-present) | 2022-02-24 to present | Protect Russian domestic supply, maintain agricultural exports and secure removal of obstacles affecting Russian food and fertiliser trade. | ukraine, grain importing states, sanctioning coalition | restriction, physical interdiction, market access, price leverage, conditionality | Russia maintained major exports and repeatedly linked corridor cooperation to its demands, while Ukrainian routes adapted and global prices moved with several concurrent shocks. | Agricultural leverage supported bargaining and influence but did not secure broad sanctions relief; its market and humanitarian effects cannot be isolated from war damage, energy prices, weather and logistics. |
| Russian oil-trade shadow fleet under post-2022 price-cap controls (2022-present) | 2022-06-03 to present | Sustain Russian seaborne oil exports and associated revenue despite coalition sanctions, service restrictions and the oil price cap. | g7 price cap coalition | financing, insurance, ownership, dependency, network control, information | Russia preserved substantial seaborne export capacity through a changing vessel and service network; coalition states expanded vessel designations, due-diligence rules and maritime enforcement. | Material adaptation that reduced the cap coalition's control over some trades, offset by discounts, logistics costs, enforcement exposure and a progressively larger designation programme. |
| Russian procurement and trade rerouting through Eurasian hubs under post-2022 controls (2022-present) | 2022-03 to present | Maintain lawful trade and supply under Russian parallel-import and procurement policy despite foreign restrictions. | coalition export control regime | network control, market operation, financing, ownership, information | Rerouting restored some controlled and adjacent goods at added cost and delay, while advanced chokepoints remained constrained; enforcement increasingly targeted third-country firms, banks and platforms; the adaptation contest remains active. | Material leakage is established for documented networks and selected product groups, but aggregate restoration, military effect and government responsibility vary by route and item. |
| Russian reserve diversification and payments adaptation (2014-2022) | 2014 to 2022-02 | Reduce exposure to foreign financial pressure by diversifying reserves, building domestic payments infrastructure and strengthening the sovereign balance sheet. | russian financial system, russian sovereign balance sheet | asset control, network control, market operation | Russia accumulated gold and developed domestic payments and messaging systems, but assets and transactions with foreign legal and custodial exposure remained vulnerable in 2022. | Preparation improved operational continuity and crisis absorption without producing immunity from reserve immobilisation or external financial restrictions. |
| Russian sanitary restrictions on Georgian and Moldovan wine and produce (2006-2013) | 2006-03 to 2013-12 | Protect Russian consumers from wine and agricultural products alleged to fail sanitary and quality requirements. | georgian exporters, moldovan exporters | restriction, market access, standard setting | Exports to Russia were interrupted and both countries diversified markets; access was later restored unevenly and Russian demand again became important for some producers. | The measures imposed concentrated trade costs but did not halt either country's European integration; strategic intent remains an inference from timing and selectivity. |
| Russian trade pressure on Ukraine before the EU Association Agreement (2013) | 2013-07 to 2013-12-17 | Russia stated concerns about trade diversion, standards and the consequences of Ukraine entering a deeper trade relationship with the European Union. | ukrainian government, ukrainian exporters | restriction, market access, price leverage, financing, conditionality | President Viktor Yanukovych's government suspended preparations to sign in November 2013 and accepted a Russian financial package in December; a successor government signed the agreement in 2014. | The pressure coincided with short-term government compliance but triggered domestic opposition and did not secure durable alignment. |
| Sanctions following Russia's annexation of Crimea and intervention in eastern Ukraine (2014-2022) | 2014-03-06 to 2022-02-23 | Respond to violations of Ukraine's sovereignty, impose costs, deter further destabilisation and later condition relief on full implementation of the Minsk agreements. | russia, russian controlled crimea | restriction, asset control, market access, withdrawal, network control | The measures did not reverse annexation or prevent full-scale invasion; they constrained selected transactions and technology, produced contested economic costs, prompted adaptation and supplied the architecture for post-2022 escalation. | Unsuccessful for reversal and later deterrence, consequential for capability access, signalling, coalition maintenance and institutional positioning; macroeconomic magnitude remains contested. |
| Sanctions following the Indian and Pakistani nuclear tests (1998-2001) | 1998-05 to 2001-09 | Penalise nuclear testing, constrain nuclear and missile capability, and encourage restraint and non-proliferation commitments | india, pakistan | withdrawal, restriction, financing, market access | India and Pakistan retained nuclear-weapons programmes, while the United States progressively waived and then removed major restrictions by September 2001 | The measures imposed financing and diplomatic costs but did not reverse nuclearisation |
| Saudi economic measures against Canada (2018-2023) | 2018-08-05 to 2023-05-24 | Reject Canadian statements about detained Saudi activists and obtain respect for Saudi sovereignty and non-interference. | canadian government, canadian businesses, canadian institutions | withdrawal, restriction, market access, asset control | Canada did not retract its position; punitive measures and reduced diplomatic relations continued until both governments restored full diplomatic relations in May 2023. | The campaign imposed sectoral and diplomatic costs but did not secure a public Canadian concession. |
| Saudi oil production increase and price decline (1985-1986) | 1985-06 to 1986-12 | Recover Saudi market share and end the disproportionate production burden created by defending the OPEC price. | oil producers, opec members | market operation, price leverage | Saudi production rose, international oil prices fell sharply and revenue pressure spread across OPEC, the Soviet Union and higher-cost producers. | Saudi Arabia recovered leverage inside the producer group, but the price decline imposed broad costs and does not by itself prove an anti-Soviet strategic operation. |
| Saudi-Russian oil production and price confrontation (2020) | 2020-03-06 to 2020-04-12 | Defend producer interests and renegotiate burden sharing after disagreement over deeper OPEC+ production restraint. | rival oil producers, oil market | market operation, price leverage, restriction | Announced production increases and Saudi selling-price discounts coincided with a historic demand collapse before an enlarged OPEC+ agreement adopted record cuts on 12 April 2020. | The confrontation changed bargaining dynamics and producer revenues, but pandemic demand destruction and storage constraints dominated the price collapse and prevent a bilateral causal account. |
| Schachtian bilateral clearing and the Reichsmark bloc (1934-1939) | 1934 to 1939 | Conserve foreign exchange, direct imports and support German rearmament through exchange control and bilateral clearing. | south eastern european trading partners | restriction, market access, dependency, network control | Germany secured managed access to regional commodities and accumulated clearing debts, while partner claims became usable mainly for German goods. | The system expanded German leverage over smaller partners but did not remove foreign-exchange scarcity or strategic raw-material constraints. |
| Sierra Leone diamond sanctions and the Kimberley Process (2000-2003) | 2000-07-05 to 2003-01-01 | Deny armed groups access to diamond revenue and protect legitimate rough-diamond trade through certification | illicit sierra leone diamond trade, revolutionary united front | restriction, market access, standard setting, information | The United Nations restricted uncertified Sierra Leone diamonds, and participating states launched the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme in January 2003 | The controls improved traceability and legal export channels but were only one factor in ending the war and did not eliminate smuggling |
| Smoot-Hawley tariff escalation and international retaliation (1930-1934) | 1930-06 to 1934-06 | Protect United States agriculture and industry through higher tariffs during severe economic stress. | foreign exporters, domestic importers | restriction, conditionality, market access | The act raised United States tariffs, prompted identifiable retaliation and became part of a wider global turn towards trade restriction before a partial institutional reversal in 1934. | It protected selected producers but contributed to trade friction and inefficiency; its independent role in the collapse of world trade and the Great Depression remains contested. |
| Soviet blockade of West Berlin and Western counter-blockade (1948-1949) | 1948-06-24 to 1949-05-12 | The Soviet Union linked access restrictions to currency and occupation disputes; the Western powers sought restored access while sustaining West Berlin. | western sectors of berlin, soviet occupation zone of germany | restriction, blockade, provision, physical interdiction | The restrictions were lifted on 12 May 1949; the Western powers retained access and continued the airlift until 30 September 1949. | The blockade failed to dislodge the Western position; the contribution of the counter-blockade relative to the airlift, diplomacy and political costs remains contested. |
| Soviet grain purchases in the United States (1972) | 1972-07 to 1973 | Secure grain after a poor Soviet harvest and expand United States agricultural exports | global grain market | market operation, financing, information | The Soviet Union acquired large grain volumes on favourable terms while United States prices and subsidy costs rose amid a broader global supply shock | Successful procurement and costly information failure, but not a coercive campaign |
| Soviet-bloc economic coercion against Yugoslavia (1948-1955) | 1948-06 to 1955-06 | Discipline the Yugoslav leadership after its rupture with the Cominform and restore conformity within the communist bloc. | yugoslavia | restriction, withdrawal, conditionality, financing | Bloc trade and finance contracted severely, but Yugoslavia survived through adjustment, Western economic support and a changed security relationship before relations normalised after Stalin's death. | The campaign imposed high costs and forced reorientation but failed to restore Soviet control over Yugoslav policy. |
| Syria sanctions, the Caesar Act and United States relief (2011-present) | 2011-04 to present | Deny resources to the Assad government and associated networks, support accountability and protect civilians, then facilitate recovery after the government's fall while retaining targeted controls. | government of syria, assad regime networks, designated persons | asset control, restriction, conditionality, withdrawal | Broad United States and European economic restrictions were dismantled in stages during 2025, and the Caesar Act was repealed, while security, counterterrorism, proliferation, accountability and person-specific measures remained. | The measures constrained finance and reconstruction but did not compel the Assad government to change course; their contribution to post-2024 transition and recovery remains unsettled. |
| Targeted sanctions against Myanmar's military authorities after the coup (2021-present) | 2021-02-01 to present | Respond to the coup and human-rights violations by constraining military access to revenue, finance, equipment and international legitimacy. | myanmar military authorities, military linked enterprises, arms procurement networks | asset control, restriction, market access, network control | Targeted programmes restricted listed persons, enterprises and services, but military authorities retained power and procurement shifted across regional channels. | Significant network and compliance effects are established, while political compellence and aggregate revenue denial are not. |
| Toshiba-Kongsberg export-control affair (1982-1988) | 1982 to 1988 | Enforce allied strategic export controls and penalise unauthorised transfers of equipment capable of improving Soviet submarine production. | toshiba machine, kongsberg vaapenfabrikk | restriction, market access, information | The disclosures produced national investigations and penalties, United States trade restrictions and pressure to strengthen COCOM procedures. | The response demonstrated political commitment to technology denial, but claims about the transferred equipment's precise military effect remain dependent on attributed assessments. |
| Transnational boycott of Danish goods during the cartoons crisis (2006) | 2006-01 to 2006 | Protest publication of the cartoons and seek apology, condemnation or other remedial action from relevant Danish actors | denmark, danish exporters, jyllands posten | withdrawal, market access, information | Danish firms faced concentrated disruption in several markets, the Danish government maintained its press-freedom position and recovery varied by firm and country | Commercial pressure is established, but political effectiveness cannot be reduced to one demand or sender and state-orchestrated compellence is not established across markets |
| Turkey's land-border closure with Armenia and partial normalisation (1993-present) | 1993-04 to present | Support Azerbaijan during the conflict and condition full bilateral normalisation on progress in regional and bilateral disputes. | armenian government, armenian economy | restriction, market access, conditionality | Armenia adapted through third-country routes, while flights, limited direct trade arrangements and a special-representative process developed without opening the common land border to general traffic by 29 July 2026. | The closure imposed durable logistics costs and signalled support for Azerbaijan, but it did not produce a comprehensive settlement and its marginal leverage declined as Armenia adapted. |
| Union blockade of the Confederacy (1861-1865) | 1861-04-19 to 1865-06-23 | Prevent entry to and exit from ports held by the rebellion, protect public security and suppress the insurrection. | confederate states of america | restriction, network control, blockade, physical interdiction | The blockade sharply constrained overseas trade and raised supply costs but remained permeable; its effects accumulated with port capture, inland operations and Confederate economic failure. | A major contributor to financial and logistical degradation, but neither complete nor independently decisive. |
| United Kingdom financial measures against Argentina during the Falklands War (1982) | 1982-04-03 to 1982-07 | Deny Argentina access to assets, credit, arms and trade after its invasion of the Falkland Islands and reinforce demands for withdrawal. | argentine government, argentine residents, argentine trade | asset control, restriction, withdrawal, market access | Assets and transactions were restricted and coalition trade measures followed, but Argentine surrender resulted from the military campaign rather than a demonstrated financial compellence mechanism. | The measures added pressure and coalition signalling, while debt exposure and banking interdependence constrained escalation and prevent a claim of decisive economic effect. |
| United Nations and allied sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1992-2001) | 1992-05-30 to 2001-09-10 | Secure compliance with peace and security demands relating first to Bosnia and later to Kosovo through multilateral and national restrictions. | federal republic of yugoslavia, serbian government, montenegrin government, bosnian serb authorities, designated officials | restriction, asset control, physical interdiction, market access, network control | The Bosnia regime was tightened, suspended and terminated through separate resolutions; later Kosovo measures operated alongside armed conflict and domestic political change, and the remaining United Nations arms embargo ended in September 2001. | Sanctions imposed major costs and may have contributed to bargaining and elite isolation, but military developments, diplomacy and domestic mobilisation prevent monocausal claims about Dayton or political change. |
| United Nations comprehensive sanctions on Iraq (1990-2003) | 1990-08-06 to 2003-05-22 | Compel Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait, restore international peace and security and, after the ceasefire, secure compliance with disarmament and related obligations. | iraq | restriction, asset control, conditionality, blockade, physical interdiction | Iraq was expelled from Kuwait by military force; postwar sanctions and inspections constrained state revenue and procurement but did not produce a clean record of compliance or regime change; humanitarian mechanisms expanded; broad civilian trade restrictions ended in May 2003 after invasion. | Strong denial and containment effects but limited and contested compellent performance, accompanied by severe civilian costs whose magnitude and causal allocation remain disputed. |
| United Nations sanctions against Southern Rhodesia and the Beira Patrol (1965-1979) | 1965-11-11 to 1979-12-21 | End the illegal rebellion, deny economic support to the minority regime and restore a lawful transition to majority rule. | southern rhodesian minority regime | restriction, market access, network control, physical interdiction | Sanctions and maritime enforcement constrained trade and oil access but leaked through regional and private channels; settlement followed only after wider military, political and regional pressure converged. | The measures were materially costly and contributory but neither airtight nor independently compellent. |
| United Nations sanctions on Eritrea (2009-2018) | 2009-12-23 to 2018-11-14 | Restrict arms and designated persons in response to Security Council findings concerning Somalia, Djibouti and regional peace and security. | eritrea, designated eritrean persons | restriction, asset control, market access, network control | The regime was expanded, monitored and then terminated by Resolution 2444 in 2018 amid changed regional relations and later monitoring findings. | The measures increased isolation and compliance burdens, but termination does not prove either prior factual error or successful compellence. |
| United Nations sanctions on UNITA's diamond finance in Angola (1993-2002) | 1993-09-15 to 2002-12-09 | Restrict UNITA's military supply, movement, finance and uncertified diamond revenue and support implementation of the Angolan peace process. | unita, designated unita officials, unita controlled diamond trade | restriction, asset control, market access, network control, standard setting | The regime expanded from arms and fuel controls to travel, assets and diamond certification before the Council terminated it in December 2002 after the war ended. | Financial denial and monitoring increased pressure, but battlefield change, state military capacity, diplomacy and Jonas Savimbi's death were central to the outcome. |
| United Nations sanctions regime against North Korea (2006-present) | 2006-10-14 to present | Prevent the DPRK from advancing prohibited nuclear, ballistic-missile and other weapons programmes and induce compliance with Security Council decisions. | north korea, designated north korean persons and entities | restriction, asset control, market access, network control, standard setting | The regime constrained legal trade and finance and exposed extensive evasion, but the DPRK continued and expanded its prohibited programmes. | Coverage and documented cost are substantial, while prevention and compellence failed and enforcement weakened through non-compliance, adaptation and monitoring loss. |
| United States advanced-computing and semiconductor controls on China (2022-present) | 2022-10-07 to present | Restrict access to advanced computing and semiconductor-manufacturing capabilities that could support military, surveillance and weapons applications. | china, chinese semiconductor sector, restricted chinese end users | restriction, market access, standard setting, network control | The controls restricted specified products, support and end uses and prompted redesign, licensing, diversion and substitution, while net capability effects remain contested and time-dependent. | Access costs and commercial disruption are established, but durable capability denial depends on enforcement, allied coverage, stockpiles and indigenous substitution. |
| United States aerial mining campaign against Japanese shipping (1945) | 1945-03-27 to 1945-08-15 | Close Japanese ports and shipping routes to restrict movement of food, raw materials and military supplies. | japanese government, japanese shipping, japanese war economy | physical interdiction, blockade, restriction | The campaign laid more than 12,000 mines, disrupted major routes and damaged or sank hundreds of vessels before Japan's surrender. | Mining imposed large shipping and port effects at low sortie cost, but its contribution must be assessed alongside submarine warfare, fuel shortage and bombing. |
| United States AI diffusion rule, non-enforcement and destination-specific controls (2025-present) | 2025-01-13 to present | Control the diffusion and diversion of advanced United States computing items and specified AI model weights while promoting authorised exports to selected partners | advanced computing exporters, ai model developers, restricted end users, covered destinations | restriction, market access, conditionality, standard setting | The January 2025 rule remains codified but subject to categorical non-enforcement, while later policy uses guidance, export promotion and destination-specific authorisations | Unresolved because legal implementation is split and public evidence does not yet establish net effects on diversion, capability diffusion, allied alignment or United States market position |
| United States and allied embargo controls against the People's Republic of China (1950-1971) | 1950-12-16 to 1971-06 | Deny strategic and economic resources to the People's Republic of China during and after the Korean War and coordinate allied controls. | peoples republic of china, chinese trade | restriction, asset control, market access, network control | Allies ended the additional China differential in 1957, while broader United States controls continued and were relaxed in stages from 1969 through 1971. | Controls imposed denial and transaction costs but were weakened by allied disagreement, transshipment and substitution through Soviet-bloc and non-United States suppliers. |
| United States blocking sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil (2025-present) | 2025-10-22 to present | Increase pressure on Russia to end its war in Ukraine by restricting two major oil companies and their networks. | rosneft, lukoil, russian government | asset control, restriction, network control, market access | Rosneft, Lukoil and identified subsidiaries became blocked persons under United States law; wider market and divestment outcomes remained live on 29 July 2026. | The legal escalation is established, but the fixed source set does not support a settled estimate of export loss, price effect or durable compliance. |
| United States denial order and settlements with ZTE (2016-2018) | 2016-03 to 2018-07-13 | Enforce United States export controls and sanctions laws, remedy false statements and secure continuing corporate compliance. | zte corporation | restriction, market access, conditionality | ZTE admitted sanctions-related conduct, paid criminal and civil penalties, faced activation of a suspended denial order and obtained its lifting after a superseding settlement with additional penalties and governance controls. | The denial order rapidly interrupted ZTE's access to important inputs and created strong settlement leverage, although claims about corporate survival require company or market evidence beyond the orders themselves. |
| United States economic pressure against the Soviet Union under Reagan (1981-1989) | 1981-01-20 to 1989-01-20 | Restrict strategic technology and subsidised finance, limit Soviet leverage through energy exports and place economic relations within a wider containment strategy. | soviet government, soviet economy | restriction, withdrawal, network control, market access, information | Controls constrained selected technology and financing channels, but allied resistance narrowed implementation and the Soviet Union's later collapse cannot be assigned to the measures. | The policies imposed friction and denied some inputs; their marginal effect cannot be separated cleanly from internal stagnation, oil-market changes, defence burdens, reform choices and nationality politics. |
| United States economic pressure and covert action against Allende's Chile (1970-1973) | 1970-09-15 to 1973-09-11 | Prevent or constrain an Allende government and support political forces opposed to it. | allende government, chile | withdrawal, conditionality, financing, market access, information | United States pressure and covert funding contributed to a hostile operating environment, while Chile's economy and politics deteriorated and the armed forces overthrew Allende; direct United States control of the coup was not established. | The campaign achieved pressure and supported opposition capacity, but its independent contribution to economic collapse and the coup cannot be isolated. |
| United States embargo against Cuba (1960-present) | 1960-10-19 to present | Deny resources to the Cuban government and induce political, human-rights, security and property-claims changes. | cuba, cuban government, designated cuban persons and entities | restriction, asset control, market access, network control, conditionality | The restrictions constrained trade and finance and imposed adjustment costs, but the Cuban political system persisted and the architecture expanded again in 2026. | Strong at denial and external transaction cost, weak at the broad compellent objectives, with humanitarian incidence and target adaptation material. |
| United States Entity List and foreign direct product rule campaign against Huawei (2019-present) | 2019-05-16 to present | Protect United States national security and foreign-policy interests by controlling specified transactions involving Huawei and listed affiliates. | huawei | restriction, market access, network control | The controls caused severe supply and revenue disruption, Huawei adapted and recovered aggregate revenue, and licensing, enforcement and technical competition continued. | Strong evidence of short-run denial and cost imposition, but weaker evidence of permanent technological exclusion or corporate collapse. |
| United States Entity List controls on SMIC (2020-present) | 2020-12-18 to present | Restrict SMIC's access to items that the United States Department of Commerce assessed could support Chinese military end uses. | semiconductor manufacturing international corporation | restriction, market access, network control | SMIC and named affiliates remain on the Entity List; the original product-specific review policy was materially tightened in December 2024, but the listing still does not prohibit every form of commerce. | The controls increased licensing friction and supplier risk, but the available evidence does not isolate their effect on SMIC's output from later controls, investment, substitution and wider semiconductor-market conditions. |
| United States export controls, asset freeze and de facto oil embargo against Japan (1940-1941) | 1940-07-02 to 1941-12-07 | Restrict resources available for Japanese aggression and induce a change in Japanese policy in China and French Indochina. | japan | restriction, asset control, market access, network control | The measures sharply restricted Japanese access to oil and foreign exchange but did not compel withdrawal; Japan chose a wider war to seize resources and neutralise opposing forces. | Material denial was strong, while compellence and deterrence failed and the contribution to escalation remains contested. |
| United States extraterritorial controls in the Siberian gas pipeline dispute (1981-1982) | 1981-12 to 1982-11 | Penalise Soviet conduct connected to martial law in Poland and constrain technology and hard-currency benefits from the export pipeline. | soviet union | restriction, network control, conditionality | The controls disrupted contracts and alliance relations but did not prevent completion of the pipeline; the United States lifted them in November 1982 amid a broader allied understanding. | The policy obtained limited allied coordination at high diplomatic cost and failed to stop the pipeline, while any construction delay attributable solely to the controls remains contested. |
| United States financial pressure on Panama under Manuel Noriega (1988-1989) | 1988-04-08 to 1989-12-20 | Deny funds and property to the Noriega-Solis regime while preserving assets for the Panamanian people and a recognised government. | noriega solis regime | asset control, withdrawal, financing, market access | The measures sharply reduced public revenue and deepened economic contraction, but the regime survived until the United States invasion in December 1989. | Financial pressure imposed substantial costs but did not independently compel regime change; military action determined the terminal political outcome. |
| United States freeze of Iranian government assets during the hostage crisis (1979-1981) | 1979-11-14 to 1981-01-20 | Protect lawful claims and respond to the national emergency created by events in Iran and the hostage crisis. | iran | asset control, restriction, withdrawal | The settlement released the hostages, transferred or unblocked much affected property, created escrow arrangements and established the Claims Tribunal. | The blocked assets became material bargaining and settlement leverage, but their independent contribution relative to diplomacy and other pressures cannot be isolated. |
| United States freeze of People's Republic of China assets (1950-1979) | 1950-12-17 to 1979-10-01 | Block assets and prohibit transactions connected to the People's Republic of China and North Korea after intervention in the Korean War. | peoples republic of china, chinese nationals, north korea, north korean nationals | asset control, restriction, network control | The United States and China settled reciprocal claims in May 1979, the United States unblocked covered Chinese assets by October and China paid an agreed fund in instalments. | The freeze denied access and complicated commerce but did not itself compel political change; its resolution became part of diplomatic and commercial normalisation. |
| United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union (1980-1981) | 1980-01-04 to 1981-04-24 | Penalise the Soviet Union for invading Afghanistan and reduce feed availability by suspending agricultural shipments above the bilateral commitment. | soviet government, soviet feed and livestock sector | restriction, market access, withdrawal | Third-country supply substantially offset the intended shortfall, domestic support measures absorbed sender costs and President Reagan lifted the restriction in April 1981. | The suspension signalled opposition but did not change Soviet policy in Afghanistan and imposed significant adjustment and credibility costs on United States agriculture. |
| United States IEEPA tariff programme and judicial invalidation (2025-2026) | 2025-02-01 to 2026-02-20 | Address declared emergencies involving illicit drugs, migration and persistent trade deficits through additional import duties. | canada, mexico, china, global trading partners | restriction, market access, price leverage | Lower courts rejected the asserted authority, the Supreme Court held that IEEPA does not authorise tariffs, the executive ended the IEEPA duties and refund administration continued. | The tariffs created short-run bargaining and market effects but failed the legal-authority test and were structurally unable to persist under IEEPA. |
| United States maximum-pressure campaigns against Venezuela and Cuba (2019-present) | 2019-01 to present | Support democratic transition, accountability and policy change through separate Venezuela and Cuba sanctions programmes. | venezuelan government, cuban government | restriction, asset control, market access, network control, withdrawal | Nicolas Maduro was removed from power by a United States military operation supporting his arrest in January 2026, while Cuba's government remained in place under intensified United States pressure; neither outcome can be attributed to sanctions alone. | Sanctions imposed costs and created leverage, but Maduro's removal followed direct force rather than sanctions compellence, and maximal political change had not occurred in Cuba by 29 July 2026. |
| United States maximum-pressure sanctions campaign against Iran (2018-2021) | 2018-05-08 to 2021-01-20 | Deny Iran a nuclear weapon, constrain missiles and regional activity, reduce resources available to designated actors and secure a broader agreement. | iran | withdrawal, restriction, asset control, market access, network control | The campaign imposed major economic and revenue costs but Iran did not accept the stated demands before 20 January 2021 and progressively exceeded JCPOA nuclear limits from 2019. | High tactical pressure and partial denial, but no demonstrated strategic compellence within the campaign period; longer-run effects remain contested. |
| United States naval quarantine of Cuba (1962) | 1962-10-23 to 1962-11-20 | Prevent delivery of additional offensive weapons to Cuba and secure withdrawal of the deployed Soviet missiles. | soviet union, cuba | physical interdiction, blockade, restriction, information | Soviet missiles were withdrawn under a settlement that also included a United States non-invasion assurance and a private Jupiter-missile understanding. | The quarantine contributed to pressure and bargaining, but its independent causal effect cannot be separated cleanly from military readiness, diplomacy and reciprocal assurances. |
| United States Russia sanctions and the Rusal-Deripaska action (2014-2019) | 2014-03 to 2019-01 | Impose costs on persons and entities identified by the United States as connected to Russian malign activity while reducing designated control over companies. | russia, oleg deripaska, en plus group, rusal, eurosibenergo | asset control, restriction, ownership, conditionality | Three companies were blocked in April 2018, operated under temporary licences, accepted control and governance changes, and were delisted in January 2019; Oleg Deripaska remained personally designated. | The action forced documented corporate restructuring but produced material commodity-market and allied spillovers, leaving the durability of substantive control reduction contested. |
| United States sanctions against Venezuela and PDVSA (2017-present) | 2017-08-24 to present | Restore democratic governance, enforce accountability and deny sanctioned Venezuelan actors access to finance and oil revenue while using relief to support electoral commitments. | government of venezuela, pdvsa | restriction, withdrawal, asset control, market access, network control, conditionality | Sanctions constrained finance, oil trade and revenue but did not by themselves remove Maduro; a separate United States operation captured him in January 2026, after which extensive but conditional licensing expanded. | Strong denial and bargaining leverage, no demonstrated sanctions-only compellence, and an unsettled 2026 transition and relief phase. |
| United States sanctions and tariffs in the Brunson dispute with Turkey (2018) | 2018-08-01 to 2019-05-16 | Secure the release of United States pastor Andrew Brunson and impose costs on officials whom the United States held responsible for his detention. | turkish government, turkish ministers | asset control, restriction, market access, price leverage | A Turkish court released Brunson on 12 October 2018, OFAC removed the ministerial designations on 2 November, and the additional steel tariff was removed in May 2019. | The proximate objective was achieved, but the record does not prove that United States measures alone caused either Brunson's release or Turkey's currency crisis. |
| United States sanctions concerning Nord Stream 2 (2017-2022) | 2017-08-02 to 2022-02-23 | Oppose a pipeline viewed as increasing European dependence on Russian gas and weakening Ukraine's transit position. | nord stream 2 ag, pipe laying vessels, service providers | restriction, market access, network control, withdrawal | Sanctions delayed construction and changed contractor participation; the pipeline was completed but never certified, and Germany halted certification after Russia's February 2022 escalation against Ukraine. | Achieved delay and network pressure, while non-operation resulted from sanctions, regulation, corporate structure and Russia's actions rather than one instrument alone. |
| United States sanctions on Poland after martial law (1981-1987) | 1981-12-13 to 1987-02-19 | End martial law, release political prisoners and restore the rights of the Polish people and their institutions. | polish government | withdrawal, restriction, financing, conditionality, market access | The United States relaxed measures incrementally and restored tariff treatment in February 1987 after political-prisoner releases and broader amnesty. | The sequence is consistent with bargaining leverage, but the record does not isolate sanctions from domestic opposition, church mediation, Soviet policy or Poland's economic crisis. |
| United States sanctions on Sudan and staged relief (1997-2020) | 1997-11 to 2020-12 | Address United States terrorism, conflict and human-rights concerns while conditioning broad relief on verified changes in Sudanese conduct. | sudan, government of sudan, designated persons | asset control, restriction, withdrawal, conditionality | Broad country and government transaction restrictions were revoked in 2017 and Sudan's state-sponsor designation was rescinded in 2020, while Darfur and later Sudan-related sanctions remained available. | Staged relief supported specific diplomatic steps, but the independent coercive effect of sanctions is difficult to separate from domestic political change, conflict, debt and regional diplomacy. |
| United States Section 232 steel and aluminium tariffs (2018-present) | 2018-03 to present | Adjust imports judged to threaten United States national security and restore domestic steel and aluminium capacity. | steel exporters, aluminium exporters | restriction, conditionality, market access, subsidy | A continuing and repeatedly amended tariff regime raised protection for domestic metal producers, generated retaliation and negotiated arrangements, and imposed costs on downstream users. | The measures supported some upstream production and prices, but their net industrial, employment and security effects remain contested and vary by product and period. |
| United States soybean export controls (1973) | 1973-06-27 to 1973-10 | Protect domestic supplies and restrain United States food and feed prices during a commodity-price shock. | exporters, agricultural importers | restriction, market access, withdrawal | The initial suspension was replaced by licensing and allocation before controls were removed; foreign buyers accelerated longer-term supplier diversification. | The controls changed short-term export access, but the evidence does not make them the sole cause of Japanese diversification or Brazil's later soybean expansion. |
| United States suspension of dollar convertibility and import surcharge (1971) | 1971-08-15 to 1971-12-20 | Protect the dollar, address the United States balance of payments and obtain exchange-rate adjustment and fairer burden sharing from trading partners. | united states trading partners, foreign monetary authorities | restriction, market access, market operation, price leverage | The December 1971 Smithsonian arrangements realigned major currencies and the United States removed the surcharge, while the gold-convertibility suspension endured. | The package secured near-term negotiation and exchange-rate changes but did not restore a durable fixed-rate system. |
| United States trade and financial embargo against Vietnam (1975-1994) | 1975-05-01 to 1994-02-03 | Restrict trade and financial relations while pursuing changing conditions concerning post-war accounting, Cambodia and bilateral normalisation. | vietnamese government, vietnamese trade | restriction, asset control, market access, withdrawal | Restrictions were relaxed in stages and the trade embargo ended in February 1994; diplomatic relations resumed separately in July 1995. | The embargo increased isolation and bargaining leverage but did not independently determine Vietnam's economic reform, Cambodia policy or eventual normalisation. |
| United States trade embargo against Nicaragua (1985-1990) | 1985-05-01 to 1990-03-13 | Respond to the Nicaraguan government's policies and regional conduct by restricting trade and transport and increasing pressure for political change. | nicaraguan government, nicaraguan trade | restriction, market access, withdrawal | The embargo remained until March 1990 and Nicaragua's government changed after the February election, amid war exhaustion, economic crisis, external pressure and changing foreign support. | The embargo imposed trade costs but leaked through alternative partners; it cannot be isolated from war, domestic policy, covert action, aid and Soviet-bloc support. |
| United States unrestricted submarine campaign against Japanese shipping (1941-1945) | 1941-12-07 to 1945-08-15 | Execute unrestricted air and submarine warfare against Japan. | japan | blockade, physical interdiction | United States submarines destroyed a major share of Japanese merchant and naval shipping and helped collapse maritime supply, alongside mining, air attack and wider military defeat. | Highly effective at operational denial and cumulative degradation; its independent contribution to the timing of surrender cannot be isolated as a settled fact. |
| United States, European Union and United Kingdom measures concerning Zimbabwe (2001-present) | 2001-12-21 to present | Respond to governance, corruption and human-rights concerns through multilateral-finance policy and targeted restrictive measures. | zimbabwean government, designated persons, designated entities | asset control, restriction, withdrawal, financing, conditionality | The United States terminated its Zimbabwe-specific emergency in 2024 and used Global Magnitsky designations, while European Union and United Kingdom measures followed separate legal paths. | The measures constrained listed actors and signalled disapproval, but the record does not establish that they caused political change or Zimbabwe's wider economic outcomes. |
| United States-China tariff conflict and Phase One agreement (2018-2020) | 2018-03-22 to 2020-02-14 | Obtain changes to Chinese technology-transfer, intellectual-property and trade practices and rebalance bilateral trade, with China seeking removal of United States tariffs. | china, united states | restriction, market access, price leverage, conditionality | The parties signed and partly implemented Phase One, but purchase commitments were missed, structural compliance remained disputed and most additional tariffs continued. | The campaign produced a negotiated pause and bounded commitments but imposed substantial sender-side costs and did not resolve the central structural dispute. |
| United States-Japan semiconductor dispute and coordinated currency realignment (1985-1991) | 1985-09-22 to 1991-07 | Coordinate exchange-rate adjustment and separately address dumping and market-access concerns in semiconductor trade. | currency imbalance, japanese semiconductor trade, bilateral market access | restriction, market access, market operation, standard setting | Coordinated intervention contributed to dollar depreciation, the semiconductor arrangement was enforced through tariffs and later replaced by a 1991 arrangement. | The instruments changed exchange and trade conditions but their effects on market share and Japan's later macroeconomic performance remain contested and multi-causal. |
| United States-led financial pressure campaign against Iran (2006-2015) | 2006-09-08 to 2015-07-14 | Induce Iran to comply with nuclear obligations and accept verifiable limits on its nuclear programme. | iran, designated iranian banks and entities | restriction, asset control, market access, network control, insurance, conditionality | Iran's oil and financial access contracted sharply and the parties concluded the JCPOA, but sanctions were one of several causes and the agreement provided limits and monitoring rather than programme dismantlement. | The campaign helped create a successful bounded bargain through broad coalition coverage, while imposing civilian costs and stimulating evasion and reduced reliance on exposed channels. |
| US secondary banking and oil sanctions against Iran under CISADA and NDAA (2010-2012) | 2010-07-01 to 2012-12-31 | Reduce revenue and financial access supporting Iran's nuclear programme and other sanctioned activity, induce significant reductions in petroleum purchases and press Iran to change course. | iran, central bank of iran, designated iranian financial institutions, foreign financial institutions, iranian oil buyers | restriction, network control, market access, asset control | Foreign importers reduced Iranian crude purchases, financial institutions curtailed covered transactions and Iranian oil exports and revenue fell materially amid combined United States, European Union and market pressure. | The architecture generated substantial financial and oil-market pressure and contributed to later negotiations, but the marginal effect of CISADA and NDAA section 1245 cannot be cleanly separated from allied sanctions, earlier restrictions, oil prices and Iranian policy. |
| USMCA non-extension and annual review process (2026-present) | 2026-07-01 to present | Review the operation of USMCA and determine whether the parties should extend its term under Article 34.7. | united states government, canadian government, mexican government | conditionality, market access, information | The United States declined extension on 1 July 2026, initiating annual joint reviews while USMCA remained in force and later extension remained legally available. | The procedure created bargaining leverage and uncertainty, but the fixed source set does not establish a causal estimate for investment or trade effects. |
| War by the United States and Israel against Iran, including Operation Epic Fury (2026) | 2026-02-28 to present | Dismantle Iranian security and military capabilities, reduce the nuclear threat and restore navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. | iran | restriction, blockade, physical interdiction | Operation Epic Fury concluded after the April ceasefire; a June memorandum collapsed; renewed United States-Iran fighting and diplomacy remained unsettled on 29 July 2026. | Provisional and phase-specific; major physical and maritime effects are established, but strategic durability and aggregate economic damage are unresolved. |
| Western credit and trade restrictions affecting the Soviet Union (1925-1934) | 1925 to 1934 | Apply national credit, customs and trade rules to Soviet commerce for different legal and political purposes | soviet union | financing, market access, restriction, withdrawal | National restrictions created episodic costs while Soviet trade and bilateral credit continued through other channels | The evidence does not support a continuous coordinated blockade or a single coercive outcome |