The Political Consequences of Economic Sanctions on the Transatlantic Relationship
Practical information
A "Les Jeudis de l'Ifri" videoconference around Rawi ABDELAL, Professor at Harvard Business School.
Sanctions have become the dominant tool of statecraft of the United States and the European Union, since the end of the Cold War. However, the systematic use of this instrument may produce unintended and somewhat paradoxical geopolitical consequences. The sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation in the field of energy are particularly illustrative of this phenomenon. Have they fueled convergence or divergence between the US and the EU?
Rawi Abdelal is the Herbert F. Johnson Professor of International Management at Harvard Business School and the Director of Harvard’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. Abdelal is an expert on globalization, geopolitics, and political economy. He is currently at work on two projects. One project, The Fragile State of the World, explores the inter-related challenges that undermined the first era of globalization, circa 1870-1914, and which threaten to destroy the current age of global capitalism. The second project, The Profits of Power, explores the geopolitics of energy in Europe and Eurasia.
This debate is for corporate members only.
Speakers
Find out more
Sanctions and the End of Trans-Atlanticism. Iran, Russia, and the Unintended Division of the West
Sanctions have become the dominant tool of statecraft of the United States and other Western states, especially the European Union, since the end of the Cold War.
Related Subjects
Other events
The EU–India Defense Partnership in an Evolving Security Environment
On 27 January 2026, the European Union and India signed a Security and Defence Partnership on the sidelines of the EU-India Summit. This agreement marks an important step in the evolution of the strategic partnership between the two sides, placing security and defence at the heart of a relationship that has until now been driven primarily by trade and economic cooperation.
One Month Ahead of the Midterms: Where Is Trump’s America Headed?
The November elections will be a test of President Trump’s grip on the U.S. political landscape and, by extension, on global geopolitics. As the political battle intensifies ahead of the vote, the U.S. economy remains resilient despite inflation and the twists and turns of trade policy, while the international order continues to be deeply unsettled by the war with Iran. The 24th edition of Ifri’s Annual Conference on the United States will examine the dynamics at play in the United States and their implications for Europe and the transatlantic relationship.