As part of an ongoing discussion around the US embargoes on Cuba, Miklos Vamos and Ali Ettefagh put their spin on the issue of sanctions. “ALL trade restrictions and embargoes are ridiculous” says Vamos, “as is the belief that they can weaken a state or a country. Such actions add further misery to the lives of Cubans (and other poor people in question in the world), but won’t hurt their governments and politicians. Embargoes are simply good pretexts for a country’s leaders to increase military spending.”
“If five phrases could summarize shallow thoughts and frame failed, self-defeating politics of the last fifty years” continues Ettefagh, “the term economic sanctions will be one of them— along with the wisdom of projecting raw military power, using nuclear weapons, declaring the end of history, and leaving financial markets to self-regulation. Simply put, economic sanctions are self-defeating in the Global Age.”
To see other points of view, or to see the full articles, check out Vamos’ article here, and Ettefagh’s article here.