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Smart, Maybe, But Ineffective

(Ha'aretz) Nitzan Feldman and Yoel Guzansky - American officials are proposing the institution of "smart sanctions": steps that will cause direct and focused damage to the interests of Tehran's policy makers without causing damage to the population. However, it is unrealistic to hope to harm the welfare of the ruling elite while at the same time avoiding harm to the general welfare of Iran's citizens. The U.S. Treasury campaign succeeded in harming localized commercial interests of the Revolutionary Guards, its broader macroeconomic influence reflected in the runaway inflation the Tehran government is having difficulty controlling. The difficulty of conducting international transactions and the attempt to camouflage trade activity with Western companies by means of indirect imports via third countries have led to an increase in the prices of imported goods, and the entire population suffers from this. Whether "smart" or "crushing," sanctions are already exacting a price from the regime, but it will adhere to its policy if it believes the road to completing the nuclear program is not long and the price it is likely to pay is not high enough to divert it from its path. The writers are researchers at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.
2010-02-12 07:41:38
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