The Art of Sanctions

The Art of Sanctions: A View from the Field is a 2017 book written by Richard Nephew. It discusses the role of sanctions as a foreign policy tool. Nephew argues about interpreting targets' responses to sanctions based on two critical factors: pain and resolve. When sanctions have achieved maximum effectiveness that lies in the application of pain against a target, but targets may have significant resolve to resist, tolerate, or overcome this pain. The author believes that sanctions have achieved maximum effectiveness resulted Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Richard Nephew is an adjunct professor and senior research scholar and program director at Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy since 1 February 2015. He also was serving as the lead sanctions expert for the U.S. team negotiating with Iran between August 2013 to December 2014. The book has been used as a guideline among the high level U.S. politicians since it was published. The book was translated to Persian in Iran in mid 2018.