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Show HINCKLEY JOURNAL OF POLITICS SPRING 2001 it is probable that Hussein will continue to let his people suffer even with the lifting of the sanctions (he has presented little real evidence of good intentions), he could no longer place the blame on the UN for Iraq's plight, thus losing an important domestic political tool. Though the sanctions have been relatively ineffective, it is difficult, in general, to judge sanctions in terms of success. As David A. Baldwin pointed out in his paper, Success and Economic Sanctions, there is little agreement over what it means when one asks if sanctions "work" (Baldwin 1999). Without agreement on this basic concept, political scientists and economists have been unable to find an accepted way of measuring their success. Thus it is impossible to declare whether the sanctions have actually "worked." Iraqi sanctions have become an increasingly contentious issue over the past several years, and it appears that they are likely to remain so in the immediate future. One of the major problems Iraqi sanctions pose for the U.S. government is the political minefield that surrounds the issue. It is so hotly contested on each side that any move in any direction by the UN is likely to attract major criticism. However, inaction on this matter has also been criticized since many believe, as does this author, that the sanctions regime as it currently exists, is not worth the resources required or the political damage caused by pictures of starving children in Iraq. Either changes must be made to the MIF and to the sanctions in general, or they should both be ended. U.S. House Committee on International Relations. 2000. Testimony of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs. 23 March. "When Sanctions Don't Work." 2000. Economist. <http://peacock.policy.osd.pentagon .ebird/ebird_sup/s20000410when.htm> (8 April). REFERENCES Baldwin, David A. 1999. "Success and Economic Sanctions." CIA Directorate of Intelligence, Office of Transnational Issues- Economic Sanctions: Strategies for Success. June. "Iran Captures Iraqi Oil and U.S. attention." 2000. Global Intelligence Update, Weekly Analysis, <http://www.STRATFOR.com> (7 April). MacVicar, Shelia. 1999. "Iraq's Unchecked Smuggling." ABC NEWS.com <http://204.202.137.137.lll/sections/world/DailyNews/iraql205 .htm> (4 December). UN Press Release. 2000. Security Council Meets to Consider Humanitarian Situation in Iraq. SC/6833. 24 March. United Nations. 2000. "Oil Company Deposits $2 Million in UN Escrow Account for Iraq." United Nations Noon Briefing Highlights, 27 April. United Nations Security Council. 2000. "Pertinent UN and U.S. Sanctions on Iraq, 1990-Present." 27 March 2000. <http:// delphis.dia.smil. mil/home. .ge/Text/ UNSCR_IRAQ_LIST_MAROO.htm>. (27 March). U.S. Department of State. 2000. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 1999 Country Reports of Human Rights Practices: Iraq. 25 February 2000. U.S. Department of State. 2000. Noon Press Briefing, conducted by spokesperson James Rubin. 29 February 2000. U.S. Department of State. 2000. Saddam Husseins Iraq. 24 March 2000. |
