Drawing on contemporary debates on legitimacy and contestation in international relations, the article offers a novel analytical framework to study processes of legitimation and delegitimation of international sanctions. We apply the framework to analyse foreign policymakers' evaluations of the legitimacy of the sanctions imposed by states and international organisations against Nicol & aacute;s Maduro's regime in Venezuela. The content analysis of evaluative statements shows that (de)legitimation processes focus mostly on who has the right to enforce sanctions and reveals differentiated legitimacy evaluations of multilateral versus unilateral enforcers, as well as of different types of international organisations. Sanctions imposed by multilateral senders and with a restricted impact on targeted individuals are evaluated as more legitimate than unilateral sanctions with a wider scope. We argue that the study of the (de)legitimation of sanctions may have important implications not only for enhancing compliance, but especially for transforming international sanctions into a legitimate mechanism of global governance.

‘What gives you the right?’ Foreign policymakers’ perceptions of the legitimacy of sanctions against democratic breakdown in Venezuela (2014–2019) / Palestini, Stefano; Villarroel, Yancy. - In: CAMBRIDGE REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. - ISSN 0955-7571. - 37:5(2024), pp. 665-689. [10.1080/09557571.2024.2351847]

‘What gives you the right?’ Foreign policymakers’ perceptions of the legitimacy of sanctions against democratic breakdown in Venezuela (2014–2019)

Palestini, Stefano
Primo
;
2024-01-01

Abstract

Drawing on contemporary debates on legitimacy and contestation in international relations, the article offers a novel analytical framework to study processes of legitimation and delegitimation of international sanctions. We apply the framework to analyse foreign policymakers' evaluations of the legitimacy of the sanctions imposed by states and international organisations against Nicol & aacute;s Maduro's regime in Venezuela. The content analysis of evaluative statements shows that (de)legitimation processes focus mostly on who has the right to enforce sanctions and reveals differentiated legitimacy evaluations of multilateral versus unilateral enforcers, as well as of different types of international organisations. Sanctions imposed by multilateral senders and with a restricted impact on targeted individuals are evaluated as more legitimate than unilateral sanctions with a wider scope. We argue that the study of the (de)legitimation of sanctions may have important implications not only for enhancing compliance, but especially for transforming international sanctions into a legitimate mechanism of global governance.
2024
5
Palestini, Stefano; Villarroel, Yancy
‘What gives you the right?’ Foreign policymakers’ perceptions of the legitimacy of sanctions against democratic breakdown in Venezuela (2014–2019) / Palestini, Stefano; Villarroel, Yancy. - In: CAMBRIDGE REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. - ISSN 0955-7571. - 37:5(2024), pp. 665-689. [10.1080/09557571.2024.2351847]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11572/437450
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