Die Anwendung und Durchsetzung US-amerikanischer Handelsbeschränkungen innerhalb der Europäischen Union – Wie schutzlos ist die EU?

»The Enforcement of U.S. Secondary Sanctions within the EU – How Defenseless is the EU?«

In order to advance their foreign policy interests, the U.S. inter alia maintains a range of so called »secondary sanctions« such as trade boycotts and foreign company divestment, which involve economic restrictions designed to inhibit non-U.S. citizens and companies abroad from doing business with a target of primary U.S. sanctions. In particular the U.S. sanctions regimes relating to Cuba and Iran consist of prominent secondary sanctions, such as the Helms-Burton Act and the Iran Sanctions Act, and have provoked much controversy, in part because of international claims that they are illegally »extraterritorial« in purpose and effect.

This book provides an overview of both the current U.S. sanctions regimes relating to Cuba and Iran and explores the discrepancy between the U.S. secondary sanctions and Council Regulation (EC) No 2271/96, which aims to protect »against the effects of the extra-territorial application of legislation adopted by a third country, and actions based thereon or resulting therefrom«.

David B. Adler analyses the reasons why the EU, despite the Regulation, is not able to properly protect European companies against proceedings initiated by the U.S. government for the infringement of US secondary sanctions and what the EU could do to live up to the Regulation’s purpose and goals.