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Backfire: How Sanctions Reshape the World Against U.S. Interests (Center on Global Energy Policy Series)

Description:

Sanctions have become the go-to foreign policy tool for the United States. Coercive economic measures such as trade tariffs, financial penalties, and export controls affect large numbers of companies and states across the globe. Some of these penalties target nonstate actors, such as Colombian drug cartels and Islamist terror groups; others apply to entire countries, including North Korea, Iran, and Russia. U.S. policy makers see sanctions as a low-cost tactic, but in reality these measures often fail to achieve their intended goals―and their potent side effects can even harm American interests.

Backfire explores the surprising ways sanctions affect multinational companies, governments, and ultimately millions of people around the world. Drawing on interviews with experts, policy makers, and people in sanctioned countries, Agathe Demarais examines the unintended consequences of the use of sanctions as a diplomatic weapon. The proliferation of sanctions spurs efforts to evade them, as states and firms seek ways to circumvent U.S. penalties. This is only part of the story. Sanctions also reshape relations between countries, pushing governments that are at odds with the U.S. closer to each other―or, increasingly, to Russia and China.

Full of counterintuitive insights spanning a wide range of topics, from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to Iran’s COVID response and China’s cryptocurrency ambitions, Backfire reveals how sanctions are transforming geopolitics and the global economy―as well as diminishing U.S. influence. This insider’s account is an eye-opening, accessible, and timely book that sheds light on the future of sanctions in an increasingly multipolar world.
Read more

Review

This book is a must read for any student or academic wishing to broaden their understanding of sanctions.-- "New Zealand International Review"

[Demarais] highlights the limitations and negative side effects of sanctions.-- "Foreign Affairs"

Demarais takes the normal critique further, arguing that sanctions . . . encourage behavior that runs counter to U.S. interests.-- "Washington Post"

Backfire [...] paints a fascinating picture of what sanctions can mean in practice. Against the vague and general descriptions in much popular and academic writing on sanctions, Demarais provides startling, [overwhelming], and instructive case studies of sanctions gone wrong.--Benjamin Letzler "International and Comparative Law Quarterly"

Backfire is a balanced, fast-paced, and often surprising account of the growing influence that sanctions have had on businesses, economies, and people around the world over recent decades, highlighting their often unintended and self-defeating consequences as well as their rare successes.--Paul Hannon, The Wall Street Journal

Backfire is particularly strong on the concerns that European political leaders had over the United States' unilateral use of sanctions. These policies, plus U.S. tariffs on European and allied goods, fueled the "strategic autonomy" agenda aimed at ensuring the EU could conduct its own foreign policy.--Rachel Ziemba "Lawfare"

Backfire offers a critical contribution to the field by explaining to laypersons, policymakers and international affairs experts alike what sanctions are about and what they do in 'real' life. Agathe Demarais uses an impressive number of examples and anecdotes to surgically decipher how sanctions work.--Mathieu Boulègue "RUSI Journal"

With the knowledge of an expert and the tight prose of a journalist, Agathe Demarais has written a fast-paced, well-articulated review of the difficulties, risks, and unintended consequences of using sanctions. This book should be added to university curricula and personal reading lists alike.

--Richard Nephew, author of The Art of Sanctions: A View from the Field

Agathe Demarais has written one of the timeliest books to be published in [2022]. [...] Demarais's book is not only essential to understanding the dynamics of U.S. sanctions but, considering that it was finished in early 2022, has proven to be prophetic with regard to recent developments in Russian oil, European energy, and semiconductors.--Mathias Fuelling "The Oxonian Review"

Anyone interested in sanctions, especially those implemented by the United States and the broader impact of the economic tool, should explore this very current and thoughtful work. This book will be appreciated by both the general reader and serious scholar, which makes it a perfect addition to economic and policy collections.--James Rhoades "Library Journal"

Current sanctions may undermine the effectiveness of future sanctions; thus, weaponizing Western banks and currencies against Russia may encourage Moscow and others to increase their reliance on China's financial system. Demarais posits that the use of sanctions as a policy instrument has probably peaked.--Barry Eichengreen "Foreign Affairs"

Demarais offers a timely and important contribution of a primarily European perspective to an important debate: Do U.S. sanctions work? Her book is a breezy tour through a series of case studies that examine the sometimes unforeseen forces U.S. sanctions unleashed, their impact on European companies, and the responses they triggered from European officials. [...] The lesson one might draw from "Backfire" is this: The U.S. needs to engage Europe.--Michael Laha "The Diplomat"

Demarais, a global policy expert, provides a contemporary analysis of U.S. sanctions' place, function, and effects in the world. [She] illuminate[s] how globalization became weaponized by superpowers and how it might have fractured the world.--Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein "The New Republic"

Demarais' astute analysis is both compelling and persuasive. [...] Backfire is an engaging and enlightening read on a crucially important subject.--Gregory Brew "The Bridge"

Demarais's argument raises important questions about why the Biden administration would choose to start a process of decoupling from China that is likely to have such potent longer-term consequences in terms of how the global economy is put together [...]. Too many analysts have pointed in this direction. Demarais is one of the most recent and most compelling.--Erik Jones "Survival"

Excellent, insightful and rather sobering.--Mark Beeson "The Conversation"

From unintended humanitarian consequences to sanctions derailing global commodities markets, Demarais provides detailed sanctions of well-intended policies having unintended consequences.-- "National Interest"

Her industry perspective is illuminating when exploring how firms behave toward sanctions.--Ali Ahmadi "International Affairs"

Important. Compelling. Relevant.--Delaney Simon "War on the Rocks"

In Backfire, Agathe Demarais highlights the risks of [export controls]. Though her manuscript was completed before the chip export ban, her argument is prescient: [...] to be effective, [sanctions] should be targeted, short-term, and backed by allies.--Edoardo Campanella "Project Syndicate"

Linking her knowledge of international sanctions to a fascinating, lively account of their far-reaching effects (including humanitarian), Demarais provides a powerful and compelling narrative of the overuse of sanctions by the United States for the past decade. An indispensable read to dive into international relations through an original and timely prism.--Julien Nocetti, Saint-Cyr Military Academy

Precise, direct, and spare, yet with an engaging tone often bordering on the wry, Agathe Demarais's Backfire is everything one would expect of a book written by the head of The Economist's Intelligence Unit. It achieves the rare blend of being both informative and enjoyable. Demarais's guidance is offered neither as a polemic nor a jeremiad, but rather as a frank and honest appraisal of a highly popular national security policy tool whose future utility may be increasingly limited.--Captain Eric Schuck "Proceedings"

Recommended.-- "Choice"

Sanctions are in fashion. Trump used them with relish. Biden has deployed formidable ones against Russia. But do they work? And what are their side effects and long-term impact? These are critical questions, and Agathe Demarais's excellent, clear-headed book has uncomfortable answers.--Daniel Franklin, executive editor, The Economist

The book is riveting stuff for the reader. It encompasses case studies of many episodes of US sanctions in recent decades, starting with Cuba. In short, an abundance of high-quality and delicious food for thought. Not only about sanctions, but especially about contemporary America.--Boris Begovic "Belgrade Law Review"

The book's perspective can be distinguished from works by former US officials [...]. American sanctions practitioners tend to write about sanctions with a certain detachment. They rarely have experience "in the field" and the unintended consequences are an affirmation of the power of the economic weapon they helped develop. For her part, Demarais aims to provide a "clear picture" about [sanctions'] effects.--Esfandyar Batmanghelidj "Phenomenal World"

The heyday of US-led sanctions is drawing to a close. Demarais predicts that a self-reliant China will increasingly undermine US sanctions on Iran, North Korea, Russia, Venezuela and other authoritarian regimes. Backfire provides valuable pointers for policymakers.--Robert Wihtol "Australian Strategic Policy Institute"

About the Author

Agathe Demarais leads the work of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) on geoeconomics. She was previously the global forecasting director of the Economist Intelligence Unit and an economic policy adviser for the diplomatic corps of the French Treasury in Russia and Lebanon.

Reviews:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read book on 21st century geopolitics through the prism of sanctions

J.H. · 2 February 2023

Agathe Demarais has written the definitive book about sanctions. Produced by someone with first-hand experience of how sanctions work and how they are reshaping the world, Backfire brings to life what may seem to many a technical or arcane subject. The central questions at the heart of this excellent book are: Why have sanctions become the go-to weapon of choice for the US? Do they work? What are the unintended consequences of sanctions over-use? Read this fast-paced, crisply-written book, and you will have a better understanding of the power dynamics that are driving global geopolitics.

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading to understand today’s go-to foreign policy tool

E.M. · 5 January 2023

This fast-paced and thoroughly researched account of how US sanctions have affected countries around the globe is a fantastic read. Demarais’s book makes the successes, failures and unintended side effects of sanctions engaging and easy to understand. Sanctions, here, are a window onto many of today’s big global issues, such as the US-China trade war. Highly recommend!

5.0 out of 5 stars Timely, accessible and entertaining

O. · 7 January 2023

A great book, timely, entertaining and well written. I especially liked the bits on how the US-China tech war will reshape the world in the coming decades. The book has a modern feel and is very useful to make sense of geopolitics.

clearly written, interesting

a. · 19 July 2023

Sanctions as an instrument of policy are far more appealing than use of the military. However, Demaris cites these statistics: “A review of all U.S. sanctions programs since 1970 shows that targeted countries altered their behavior in the way that the United States hoped that they would only 13 percent of the time. In an additional 22 percent of the cases, the policies of sanctioned states became somewhat—but not fully—more palatable to Washington.” When they do not work, the US may be loathe to eliminate them for fear that targeted countries in the future would be more likely to wait them out. They can also be counter-productive: “when dictatorships fall under sanctions, their human rights record tends to deteriorate” and anti-American sentiment often increases; sanctions can hurt US competitiveness; finally, Demarais notes “Nowadays, about 15 percent of the staff of a major bank works in the compliance department” (but does this pertain to money-laundering as well as sanctions), and then there is the burden on US companies who face uncertainty and expend resources to gain exemptions.Sanctions are least likely to work against major countries, or if our allies are not on board. While Demaris does not make this point, increasingly countries who are not our allies support objects of our sanctions, e.g. China supporting Russia or India buying Russian oil. Demarais does discuss how countries like China or even India who might be objects of financial sanctions in the future, are increasingly creating the means to mitigate their power.Demarais notes with various examples that the US is less likely to be concerned when sanctions hurt our allies than when they hurt US companies. Moreover, when the specifics of sanctions are being formulated, “OFAC (the agency responsible) discusses sanctions plans behind closed doors with only a handful of well-connected American firms”, unlike plans for tariffs, export controls or anti money laundering procedures which are all subject to public comment. In a catch 22, “it is impossible for foreign firms to apply for sanctions waivers; only American businesses can. OFAC argues that granting such waivers to non-U.S. firms would fuel the perception that U.S. (secondary) sanctions are extraterritorial” which they effectively are.The book is written clearly and mostly at an appropriate level of detail. While not strictly germane to the subject, I was surprised to learn that since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and before the latest invasion, the European Union provided twice as much annual aid to Ukraine as the US, in addition to bilateral aid. In a classic case of misdirected actions, prior to the terrible US wildfires of the 2020, the US grounded its fleet of Chines made drones used to monitor controlled burns as well as actual wildfires; controlled burns were not carried out despite Dept. of Interior staff warnings and the drones stayed inactive during the fires.

Eh

A.c. · 17 February 2025

Not bad; not great.Poorly edited. Grammatical mistakes distracted me and made me wonder whether the author was likewise carelessness with facts.There was too much political bias and not enough explanation of the mechanics of how sanctions are formulated, enforced and measured.Oh the other hand, the review of sanctions history was helpful.

A decent review

S.K.L. · 13 July 2023

In a fast changing world this is an interesting read. Not sure I agreed with all aspects of what was written but it gave me lots to think about.

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Backfire: How Sanctions Reshape the World Against U.S. Interests (Center on Global Energy Policy Series)

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BOLO operates in accordance with the laws and regulations of United Arab Emirates. Any items found to be restricted or prohibited for sale within the UAE will be cancelled prior to shipment. We take proactive measures to ensure that only products permitted for sale in United Arab Emirates are listed on our website.

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Visit the Columbia University Press Store

Backfire: How Sanctions Reshape the World Against U.S. Interests (Center on Global Energy Policy Series)

Product ID: K0231216653
Condition: New

4.2

Backfire: How Sanctions Reshape the World Against U.S. Interests (Center on Global Energy Policy Series)-0
Type: Paperback

AED32569

Price includes VAT & Import Duties
Availability: In Stock

Quantity:

|

Order today to get by 7-14 business days

This item qualifies for free delivery

Returns & Warranty policies

Imported From: United Kingdom

At BOLO, we work hard to ensure the products you receive are new, genuine, and sourced from reputable suppliers.

BOLO is not an authorized or official retailer for most brands, nor are we affiliated with manufacturers unless specifically stated on a product page. Instead, we source verified sellers, authorized distributors or directly from the manufacturer.

Each product undergoes thorough inspection and verification at our consolidation and fulfilment centers to ensure it meets our strict authenticity and quality standards before being shipped and delivered to you.

If you ever have concerns regarding the authenticity of a product purchased from us, please contact Bolo Support. We will review your inquiry promptly and, if necessary, provide documentation verifying authenticity or offer a suitable resolution.

Your trust is our top priority, and we are committed to maintaining transparency and integrity in every transaction.

All product information, images, descriptions, and reviews originate from the manufacturer or from trusted sellers overseas. BOLO is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an authorized retailer for most brands listed on our website unless stated otherwise.

While we strive to display accurate information, variations in packaging, labeling, instructions, or formulation may occasionally occur due to regional differences or supplier updates. For detailed or manufacturer-specific information, please contact the brand directly or reach out to BOLO Support for assistance.

Unless otherwise stated, all prices displayed on the product page include applicable taxes and import duties.

BOLO operates in accordance with the laws and regulations of United Arab Emirates. Any items found to be restricted or prohibited for sale within the UAE will be cancelled prior to shipment. We take proactive measures to ensure that only products permitted for sale in United Arab Emirates are listed on our website.

All items are shipped by air, and any products classified as “Dangerous Goods (DG)” under IATA regulations will be removed from the order and cancelled.

All orders are processed manually, and we make every effort to process them promptly once confirmed. Products cancelled due to the above reasons will be permanently removed from listings across the website.

Description:

Sanctions have become the go-to foreign policy tool for the United States. Coercive economic measures such as trade tariffs, financial penalties, and export controls affect large numbers of companies and states across the globe. Some of these penalties target nonstate actors, such as Colombian drug cartels and Islamist terror groups; others apply to entire countries, including North Korea, Iran, and Russia. U.S. policy makers see sanctions as a low-cost tactic, but in reality these measures often fail to achieve their intended goals―and their potent side effects can even harm American interests.

Backfire explores the surprising ways sanctions affect multinational companies, governments, and ultimately millions of people around the world. Drawing on interviews with experts, policy makers, and people in sanctioned countries, Agathe Demarais examines the unintended consequences of the use of sanctions as a diplomatic weapon. The proliferation of sanctions spurs efforts to evade them, as states and firms seek ways to circumvent U.S. penalties. This is only part of the story. Sanctions also reshape relations between countries, pushing governments that are at odds with the U.S. closer to each other―or, increasingly, to Russia and China.

Full of counterintuitive insights spanning a wide range of topics, from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to Iran’s COVID response and China’s cryptocurrency ambitions, Backfire reveals how sanctions are transforming geopolitics and the global economy―as well as diminishing U.S. influence. This insider’s account is an eye-opening, accessible, and timely book that sheds light on the future of sanctions in an increasingly multipolar world.
Read more

Review

This book is a must read for any student or academic wishing to broaden their understanding of sanctions.-- "New Zealand International Review"

[Demarais] highlights the limitations and negative side effects of sanctions.-- "Foreign Affairs"

Demarais takes the normal critique further, arguing that sanctions . . . encourage behavior that runs counter to U.S. interests.-- "Washington Post"

Backfire [...] paints a fascinating picture of what sanctions can mean in practice. Against the vague and general descriptions in much popular and academic writing on sanctions, Demarais provides startling, [overwhelming], and instructive case studies of sanctions gone wrong.--Benjamin Letzler "International and Comparative Law Quarterly"

Backfire is a balanced, fast-paced, and often surprising account of the growing influence that sanctions have had on businesses, economies, and people around the world over recent decades, highlighting their often unintended and self-defeating consequences as well as their rare successes.--Paul Hannon, The Wall Street Journal

Backfire is particularly strong on the concerns that European political leaders had over the United States' unilateral use of sanctions. These policies, plus U.S. tariffs on European and allied goods, fueled the "strategic autonomy" agenda aimed at ensuring the EU could conduct its own foreign policy.--Rachel Ziemba "Lawfare"

Backfire offers a critical contribution to the field by explaining to laypersons, policymakers and international affairs experts alike what sanctions are about and what they do in 'real' life. Agathe Demarais uses an impressive number of examples and anecdotes to surgically decipher how sanctions work.--Mathieu Boulègue "RUSI Journal"

With the knowledge of an expert and the tight prose of a journalist, Agathe Demarais has written a fast-paced, well-articulated review of the difficulties, risks, and unintended consequences of using sanctions. This book should be added to university curricula and personal reading lists alike.

--Richard Nephew, author of The Art of Sanctions: A View from the Field

Agathe Demarais has written one of the timeliest books to be published in [2022]. [...] Demarais's book is not only essential to understanding the dynamics of U.S. sanctions but, considering that it was finished in early 2022, has proven to be prophetic with regard to recent developments in Russian oil, European energy, and semiconductors.--Mathias Fuelling "The Oxonian Review"

Anyone interested in sanctions, especially those implemented by the United States and the broader impact of the economic tool, should explore this very current and thoughtful work. This book will be appreciated by both the general reader and serious scholar, which makes it a perfect addition to economic and policy collections.--James Rhoades "Library Journal"

Current sanctions may undermine the effectiveness of future sanctions; thus, weaponizing Western banks and currencies against Russia may encourage Moscow and others to increase their reliance on China's financial system. Demarais posits that the use of sanctions as a policy instrument has probably peaked.--Barry Eichengreen "Foreign Affairs"

Demarais offers a timely and important contribution of a primarily European perspective to an important debate: Do U.S. sanctions work? Her book is a breezy tour through a series of case studies that examine the sometimes unforeseen forces U.S. sanctions unleashed, their impact on European companies, and the responses they triggered from European officials. [...] The lesson one might draw from "Backfire" is this: The U.S. needs to engage Europe.--Michael Laha "The Diplomat"

Demarais, a global policy expert, provides a contemporary analysis of U.S. sanctions' place, function, and effects in the world. [She] illuminate[s] how globalization became weaponized by superpowers and how it might have fractured the world.--Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein "The New Republic"

Demarais' astute analysis is both compelling and persuasive. [...] Backfire is an engaging and enlightening read on a crucially important subject.--Gregory Brew "The Bridge"

Demarais's argument raises important questions about why the Biden administration would choose to start a process of decoupling from China that is likely to have such potent longer-term consequences in terms of how the global economy is put together [...]. Too many analysts have pointed in this direction. Demarais is one of the most recent and most compelling.--Erik Jones "Survival"

Excellent, insightful and rather sobering.--Mark Beeson "The Conversation"

From unintended humanitarian consequences to sanctions derailing global commodities markets, Demarais provides detailed sanctions of well-intended policies having unintended consequences.-- "National Interest"

Her industry perspective is illuminating when exploring how firms behave toward sanctions.--Ali Ahmadi "International Affairs"

Important. Compelling. Relevant.--Delaney Simon "War on the Rocks"

In Backfire, Agathe Demarais highlights the risks of [export controls]. Though her manuscript was completed before the chip export ban, her argument is prescient: [...] to be effective, [sanctions] should be targeted, short-term, and backed by allies.--Edoardo Campanella "Project Syndicate"

Linking her knowledge of international sanctions to a fascinating, lively account of their far-reaching effects (including humanitarian), Demarais provides a powerful and compelling narrative of the overuse of sanctions by the United States for the past decade. An indispensable read to dive into international relations through an original and timely prism.--Julien Nocetti, Saint-Cyr Military Academy

Precise, direct, and spare, yet with an engaging tone often bordering on the wry, Agathe Demarais's Backfire is everything one would expect of a book written by the head of The Economist's Intelligence Unit. It achieves the rare blend of being both informative and enjoyable. Demarais's guidance is offered neither as a polemic nor a jeremiad, but rather as a frank and honest appraisal of a highly popular national security policy tool whose future utility may be increasingly limited.--Captain Eric Schuck "Proceedings"

Recommended.-- "Choice"

Sanctions are in fashion. Trump used them with relish. Biden has deployed formidable ones against Russia. But do they work? And what are their side effects and long-term impact? These are critical questions, and Agathe Demarais's excellent, clear-headed book has uncomfortable answers.--Daniel Franklin, executive editor, The Economist

The book is riveting stuff for the reader. It encompasses case studies of many episodes of US sanctions in recent decades, starting with Cuba. In short, an abundance of high-quality and delicious food for thought. Not only about sanctions, but especially about contemporary America.--Boris Begovic "Belgrade Law Review"

The book's perspective can be distinguished from works by former US officials [...]. American sanctions practitioners tend to write about sanctions with a certain detachment. They rarely have experience "in the field" and the unintended consequences are an affirmation of the power of the economic weapon they helped develop. For her part, Demarais aims to provide a "clear picture" about [sanctions'] effects.--Esfandyar Batmanghelidj "Phenomenal World"

The heyday of US-led sanctions is drawing to a close. Demarais predicts that a self-reliant China will increasingly undermine US sanctions on Iran, North Korea, Russia, Venezuela and other authoritarian regimes. Backfire provides valuable pointers for policymakers.--Robert Wihtol "Australian Strategic Policy Institute"

About the Author

Agathe Demarais leads the work of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) on geoeconomics. She was previously the global forecasting director of the Economist Intelligence Unit and an economic policy adviser for the diplomatic corps of the French Treasury in Russia and Lebanon.

Reviews:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read book on 21st century geopolitics through the prism of sanctions

J.H. · 2 February 2023

Agathe Demarais has written the definitive book about sanctions. Produced by someone with first-hand experience of how sanctions work and how they are reshaping the world, Backfire brings to life what may seem to many a technical or arcane subject. The central questions at the heart of this excellent book are: Why have sanctions become the go-to weapon of choice for the US? Do they work? What are the unintended consequences of sanctions over-use? Read this fast-paced, crisply-written book, and you will have a better understanding of the power dynamics that are driving global geopolitics.

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading to understand today’s go-to foreign policy tool

E.M. · 5 January 2023

This fast-paced and thoroughly researched account of how US sanctions have affected countries around the globe is a fantastic read. Demarais’s book makes the successes, failures and unintended side effects of sanctions engaging and easy to understand. Sanctions, here, are a window onto many of today’s big global issues, such as the US-China trade war. Highly recommend!

5.0 out of 5 stars Timely, accessible and entertaining

O. · 7 January 2023

A great book, timely, entertaining and well written. I especially liked the bits on how the US-China tech war will reshape the world in the coming decades. The book has a modern feel and is very useful to make sense of geopolitics.

clearly written, interesting

a. · 19 July 2023

Sanctions as an instrument of policy are far more appealing than use of the military. However, Demaris cites these statistics: “A review of all U.S. sanctions programs since 1970 shows that targeted countries altered their behavior in the way that the United States hoped that they would only 13 percent of the time. In an additional 22 percent of the cases, the policies of sanctioned states became somewhat—but not fully—more palatable to Washington.” When they do not work, the US may be loathe to eliminate them for fear that targeted countries in the future would be more likely to wait them out. They can also be counter-productive: “when dictatorships fall under sanctions, their human rights record tends to deteriorate” and anti-American sentiment often increases; sanctions can hurt US competitiveness; finally, Demarais notes “Nowadays, about 15 percent of the staff of a major bank works in the compliance department” (but does this pertain to money-laundering as well as sanctions), and then there is the burden on US companies who face uncertainty and expend resources to gain exemptions.Sanctions are least likely to work against major countries, or if our allies are not on board. While Demaris does not make this point, increasingly countries who are not our allies support objects of our sanctions, e.g. China supporting Russia or India buying Russian oil. Demarais does discuss how countries like China or even India who might be objects of financial sanctions in the future, are increasingly creating the means to mitigate their power.Demarais notes with various examples that the US is less likely to be concerned when sanctions hurt our allies than when they hurt US companies. Moreover, when the specifics of sanctions are being formulated, “OFAC (the agency responsible) discusses sanctions plans behind closed doors with only a handful of well-connected American firms”, unlike plans for tariffs, export controls or anti money laundering procedures which are all subject to public comment. In a catch 22, “it is impossible for foreign firms to apply for sanctions waivers; only American businesses can. OFAC argues that granting such waivers to non-U.S. firms would fuel the perception that U.S. (secondary) sanctions are extraterritorial” which they effectively are.The book is written clearly and mostly at an appropriate level of detail. While not strictly germane to the subject, I was surprised to learn that since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and before the latest invasion, the European Union provided twice as much annual aid to Ukraine as the US, in addition to bilateral aid. In a classic case of misdirected actions, prior to the terrible US wildfires of the 2020, the US grounded its fleet of Chines made drones used to monitor controlled burns as well as actual wildfires; controlled burns were not carried out despite Dept. of Interior staff warnings and the drones stayed inactive during the fires.

Eh

A.c. · 17 February 2025

Not bad; not great.Poorly edited. Grammatical mistakes distracted me and made me wonder whether the author was likewise carelessness with facts.There was too much political bias and not enough explanation of the mechanics of how sanctions are formulated, enforced and measured.Oh the other hand, the review of sanctions history was helpful.

A decent review

S.K.L. · 13 July 2023

In a fast changing world this is an interesting read. Not sure I agreed with all aspects of what was written but it gave me lots to think about.

Similar suggestions by Bolo

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Similar items from “Finance”

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Or share with link

https://www.bolo.ae/products/K0231216653