Book

The Economic Weapon: The Rise of Sanctions as a Tool of Modern War

2022

Synopsis

Economic sanctions dominate the landscape of world politics today. First developed in the early twentieth century as a way of exploiting the flows of globalization to defend liberal internationalism, their appeal is that they function as an alternative to war. This view, however, ignores the dark paradox at their core: designed to prevent war, economic sanctions are modeled on devastating techniques of warfare.

Tracing the use of economic sanctions from the blockades of World War I to the policing of colonial empires and the interwar confrontation with fascism, Nicholas Mulder uses extensive archival research in a political, economic, legal, and military history that reveals how a coercive wartime tool was adopted as an instrument of peacekeeping by the League of Nations. This timely study casts an overdue light on why sanctions are widely considered a form of war, and why their unintended consequences are so tremendous.

Suggested Reading

Naval Blockades in Peace and War: An Economic History since 1750

The book "Naval Blockades in Peace and War: An Economic History since 1750," co-authored by economic historians Lance E. Davis and Stanley L. Engerman, offers a detailed quantitative analysis of blockades as a longstanding tool of economic warfare. It traces their evolution from the mid-eighteenth c...

NATO Transformed: The Alliance’s New Roles in International Security

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, perhaps more than any other Cold War institution, embodied the West’s determination to deter potential Soviet aggression in Europe. But nearly a decade after the collapse of the Soviet empire, the Atlantic Alliance is engaged in cooperative security endeavors ...

We use cookies to improve your experience on our website. By continuing to browse, you accept our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.