Received 21.03.2024. Revised 18.04.2024. Accepted 03.05.2024.
Abstract. The paper is devoted to the study of sanctions and their impact on the humanitarian situation of a population experiencing armed conflict in their territory – Syria. The methodology is based on a qualitative case study using a qualitative research method and a statistical method to analyze the indicators of the humanitarian situation of the Syrian people after the imposition of sanctions. The paper provides comprehensive research and assessment on humanitarian consequences of the sanctions on the following indicators: GDP; GDP per capita; national currency exchange rate and inflation; damage to fundamental sectors of the economy; import and export; the number of people living in need; number of refugees; average cost of a standard food basket; diesel’s retail price etc. The study demonstrates data, mostly presented by the UN bodies, in three periods: 2000–2010 – a period of economical and living standards increase in Syria; 2011–2019 – the period of armed conflict and sanctions against Syria adopted by the number of countries; 2020–2023 – the period after enactment of the US special sanctions law the “Caesar Act” – a period providing the actual indicators at the present stage. The authors focus on the unilateral extraterritorial sanctions imposed against Syria since 2011, supposedly aimed to exert political pressure on Syria and its traditional partners. However, the sanctions adopted after the war and significantly worsened the humanitarian situation in all its territory.
Keywords: sanctions, Syria, USA, economy, sanctions assessments, humanitarian situation, humanitarian implications, “Caesar Act”
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