Blockade is the sledgehammer in this comparison, while sanctions target particular goods, relationships, activities, or people. An embargo can ban trade while allowing exceptions for food and medicine, though even permitted cargo may require inspection for dual-use chemicals. Diplomatic sanctions withdraw formal ties, while military sanctions can include measures such as a no-fly zone. Sporting and environmental restrictions extend coercion beyond conventional commerce, and individual sanctions can restrict travel or expose a person to arrest. These tools disturb less global trade than a full blockade, but they demand multinational agreement and detailed intelligence. Their apparent precision replaces the fleet-intensive burden of blockade with an enforcement and information problem.
Chapter · 33:42-36:55
Sanctions as a more selective alternative to blockade
Embargoes and economic, diplomatic, military, sporting, environmental, or individual sanctions promise narrower pressure than blockade, but only when states coordinate and intelligence can identify prohibited movement.