Financial sanctions as an instrument of international policy
Authors: Pilat O. V. , Sharenko M. S. , Sumtsova С. О. 
Published: February 2025

Today, financial sanctions are one of the most powerful instruments of international politics, allowing to influence states without the direct use of military force. The use of economic restrictions has become a comprehensive alternative to traditional methods of conflict resolution, providing the international community with a means of putting pressure on violators of international law. Over the past decades, sanctions have demonstrated their effectiveness in influencing economic and political processes in various countries around the world, such as Iran, North Korea and Russia.
The issue of sanctions is particularly relevant in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, where they have become the main instrument of international response to aggression. In this regard, the study of financial sanctions as an instrument of international politics is gaining new significance, especially in the context of global economic interdependence. Studying the effectiveness of such measures, their impact on targeted states, as well as analysing possible consequences for the international financial system is an important task for both scholars and practitioners.
The study revealed the key patterns of application of financial sanctions as an instrument of international policy. It was found that multilateral sanctions regimes that combine different types of restrictions are the most effective. The economic impact of sanctions is manifested through a decline in GDP, rising inflation and devaluation of the national currency of target countries, with the degree of impact correlating with the level of integration of their economies into the global financial system.
The article reveals the growing role of secondary sanctions in enhancing the effectiveness of primary restrictions, although their excessive use can lead to fragmentation of the global financial system. In the context of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, sanctions have demonstrated a significant economic impact, especially after 2022, but their political effectiveness remains limited. The results of the study point to the need to improve the mechanisms for applying financial sanctions by strengthening international coordination and developing more flexible sanctions regimes.
The research materials are: 1) legal acts regulating financial sanctions as an instrument of international policy, including Ukrainian and international sources; 2) works of domestic and foreign authors who study the use of financial sanctions in global politics and their impact on economic and political processes. The following scientific methods were used: theoretical generalisation (to study the basic concepts and doctrines of financial sanctions as an instrument of international politics); analysis and synthesis (to study the impact of sanctions on the economic system of target countries and the political consequences of their application); comparative analysis (to compare the effectiveness of sanctions imposed by different countries and international organisations, in particular in the context of sanctions against Russia and Iran);formalisation method (for building a scheme of sanctions and assessing their impact on the international financial system).