Tag

#economic warfare

The use of economic instruments — sanctions, blockades, asset freezes, trade restrictions — as weapons to harm a state or population. When economic warfare causes civilian suffering, it implicates the prohibition on collective punishment.

1 incident

Grade 5 of 5: International Crime (Rome Statute)

U.S. Naval Blockade of Iranian Ports

The United States imposed a full naval blockade on all Iranian ports after peace talks in Islamabad collapsed, threatening to destroy any vessel approaching. The blockade — the first U.S. naval blockade since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis — is a belligerent act that, imposed in furtherance of an unlawful war, is a listed act of aggression (UNGA Res 3314, Art 3(c)). It threatens 25% of global seaborne oil and inflicts severe economic harm on Iran's civilian population; the US declared a humanitarian exemption for food and medicine, and whether that exemption operates in practice is disputed.