In the light of recent political events, many were interested in the question of what is sanction and how can Russia fight the huge number of sanctions announced to it by various countries and international organizations.
Legal regulations
The regulation of relations between people, their groups, organizations and even states is due to social norms, which include morality, traditions, and, of course, law. A right is a set of rules of conduct that are binding on everyone and formally enshrined in sources, such as laws,
by-laws, international treaties, conventions, and so on. Their non-fulfillment threatens the subject with the application of measures of state influence, that is, punishment or coercion. In order to answer the main question of the article, you need to understand
what a hypothesis, disposition, sanction is. These concepts are closely interrelated, since they are the structure of any legal norm.
Legal Framework
As a general rule, any legal norm consists of three parts, although there may be exceptions. The first element is called a hypothesis and is a description of the conditions under which this or that rule will act. The second is disposition. This is directly the central part of the norm, which proclaims one or another model of behavior. And finally, what is sanction? This is the part that captures the consequences of performing or not fulfilling a disposition. At the same time, sanctions can be both positive, so to speak, encouraging for the right actions, and negative. The latter determine the measure of impact on the subject of law in case of failure to meet the requirements for his behavior and actions in these conditions. Thus, in considering the structure of law, it is quite clear what norms and sanctions are. Another thing when it comes to international relations.
International sanctions: a bit of history
For everyone who is interested in the question of what is sanction, it is necessary to clarify that although in the sphere of international relations this term appeared quite recently (in the charter of the League of Nations after the First World War), the phenomenon itself, designated by it, is as old as the world. Even in Ancient Greece, the application of economic measures of pressure on the state, which showed itself aggressively or with which there were contradictions, was practiced. These measures of influence were to force the opponent to change his foreign policy without bloodshed. They were called reprisals.
Over time, in the history of European politics, they have been applied to both the state and individuals, its subjects. An interesting fact is that in the nineteenth century, Napoleon Bonaparte was able to fully apply measures of economic influence to weaken the enemy. We are talking about the famous continental blockade. Every student of history at school knows what Napoleon’s sanction is. It included a ban on trade with England and was supported by all European countries that the French emperor conquered or intimidated from 1806 to 1812. It was her failure to comply with Russia and clandestine trade with Britain that became the main reasons for Napoleon’s attack on Russia. In an attempt to save the world from new wars, the League of Nations as a punishment expelled the aggressor country from membership, which did not prevent, for example, Germany and Italy from continuing their aggressive policy.
United Nations sanctions
One of the outcomes of World War II was the establishment of the UN. This international organization in its charter provides for the application of sanctions to aggressor countries. Under this document, the Security Council may decide on the application of non-military measures in countries that threaten the preservation of peace. I must say that they are understood primarily as economic measures. So, everyone knows about the application of sanctions against Iraq and Yugoslavia, the facts of the economic impact on South Africa and Rhodesia are less well known. In order to enforce coercive measures, which may include a full or partial embargo, a freeze of assets, a ban on the sale of certain goods, a ban on travel, a decision of the Security Council is necessary. Russia is part of it and has a
veto, which does not allow the UN to apply sanctions against it.
EU and US sanctions
Over the past decade, the United States has acted without particularly looking at the UN, taking responsibility for establishing democracy and establishing order around the world. The emerging unipolar world fully meets their interests. Therefore, in connection with the position of Russia in relation to the Ukrainian crisis and the annexation of Crimea, the USA, EU, Canada, Australia and other states acted as initiators of economic coercion measures against Russia. What are EU sanctions? This is a set of measures aimed at forcing Russia to change its point of view on the issue of Ukraine and return Crimea to it. In the spring of 2014, the accounts of Russian companies abroad were first frozen, then a list of banned persons to these countries was published. The calculation is aimed at creating problems for the highest Russian economic elite in order to cause pressure on the Russian government. Alas, very soon Crimea ceased to be the main problem of the Ukrainian question.
Today's situation
In connection with the events in eastern Ukraine, which Russia is also accused of, more and more demands are being made on it and new sanctions are being put forward. Such economic measures of influence from even one state can cause serious consequences. Here we are dealing with dozens of countries. What are group sanctions for Russia? These are actions that can kill the economy of any state. Nevertheless, Russian politicians believe that they will be able to solve the problems that have arisen by reorienting economic activity towards the countries of the East and Latin America. In addition, Russia itself has introduced a number of bans on the import of meat and agricultural products from the EU, USA, Canada, and so on. Will the state survive at the expense of its own resources? If so, this will be a huge blow for political opponents. After all, everything that does not kill makes us stronger ...