International Day against Unilateral Coercive Measures

The U.N. Security Council can freeze assets to deny listed individuals or entities funds, a tool used to maintain international peace and security. This is done through resolutions that mandate member states to freeze the funds , financial assets , or economic resources of designated persons or groups , and specific committees oversee these actions and grant exemptions for things like basic expenses or humanitarian aid. Examples of such measures include  asset freezing  and  travel bans  have been employed by individual States in order to influence persons who are perceived to have political influence in another State.

  Examples of such measures include the so-called  “smart” sanctions  or  “targeted” sanctions  have been employed by individual States in order to influence persons who are perceived to have political influence in another State (Human Rights Council resolution  19/33 ).

Amidst global challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the effects of climate change, geopolitical pressures and the changing trade landscape, developing countries have made commendable efforts to implement policy options that minimize the effects of global shocks on their economies, including policies that boosted domestic resource mobilization. Meanwhile, the International Financial Architecture framework, which has recently come under scrutiny, has not been able to provide the necessary financing to meet countries’ sustainable development needs. Thus, developing countries are compelled to look to alternative means of not only financing sustainable development, but also ensuring economic resilience to future shocks. Measuring and curbing illicit financial flows (IFFs), which divert much-needed financing for development by eroding the tax base, could strengthen domestic resource mobilization and enhance financing for sustainable development. The importance of the fight against IFF...

An embargo is an economic tool employed by governments to restrict trade, commerce, and investment with another nation, often as a form of punishment or to exert pressure. These measures are a specific type of economic sanction, which have been utilized for thousands of years but gained prominence in diplomatic practices during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. While embargoes can be enacted by individual countries, such as the United States, they can also be established through international organizations like the United Nations, which requires a voting process among member states. True embargoes completely halt economic activity with the targeted country, contrasting with strategic embargoes that may only limit certain types of trade, such as arms. Despite their widespread use, studies suggest that embargoes often fall short of achieving their intended goals, as countries may find ways to circumvent these measures. Additionally, embargoes differ from blockades, which are mo...

According to the United Nations Human Rights Office ( OHCHR ), the term “ unilateral coercive measures ” usually refers to economic measures taken by one State to compel a change in the policy of another State . Examples of such measures include trade sanctions in the form of embargoes and the interruption of financial and investment flows between sender and target countries. More recently, so-called “smart” sanctions or “targeted” sanctions , such as asset freezing and travel bans have been employed by individual States in order to influence persons who are perceived to have political influence in another State (Human Rights Council resolution 19/33 ). Unilateral coercive measures and legislation are contrary to international law, including international human rights law and international humanitarian law , the Charter of the United Nations and the norms and principles governing peaceful relations among States, such as the Declaration on Principles of International Law co...

  The General Assembly,  Guided by and determined to promote strict compliance with the purposes and principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, Guided also by the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerningFriendly Relations and Cooperation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations , contained in the annex to its resolution 2625 (XXV) of 24 October1970 , Stressing that unilateral coercive measures and legislation are contrary to international law , including international human rights law and international humanitarian law, the Charter of the United Nations and the norms and principles governing peaceful relations among States, Emphasizing the need to promote dialogue, mutual respect, understanding, tolerance and multilateralism as the cornerstone of international relations anddiplomacy ,  1. Decides to proclaim 4 December as the International Day againstUnilateral Coercive Measures , to be observed annually, beginni...