Israel Matzav: Another reason sanctions against Iran won't work: Smugglers

Another reason sanctions against Iran won't work: Smugglers

This is from a New York Times report on the problems that the United States has had in enforcing its own sanctions against Iran.

Black market networks have sprouted up all over the globe to circumvent the sanctions. A typical embargo-busting scheme was detailed in a plea agreement filed in federal court here on Sept. 24, the day before Mr. Obama and European allies announced the existence of a previously undisclosed Iranian nuclear enrichment facility near Qum.

In the court filings, a Dutch aviation services company and its owner admitted that they had illegally funneled American aircraft and electronics components to Iran from 2005 to 2007. Under the scheme, Iranian customers secretly placed orders with the company, which served as a front, buying the parts and having them shipped to the Netherlands, Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates. The materials were then quietly repackaged and shipped on to the real buyers in Iran.

The Dutch company was eventually caught. But the ease with which it had operated until then illustrates a key hurdle facing the United States: even if diplomatic challenges can be overcome to persuade countries with significant economic ties to Iran, like China, to approve sanctions, it is virtually impossible to make an embargo airtight.

“The Iranians have a lot of experience at this point in evading sanctions,” said Michael Jacobson, an intelligence and sanctions specialist at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “They are adaptable, learn from mistakes, see where the United States cracks down and move elsewhere. And on the part of businesses, there is a lot of willful blindness.”

With months at most until Iran becomes a nuclear power, there is no time for sanctions to work. There is only one way to stop Iran before it goes nuclear. That way is not sanctions.

Israel Matzav: Another reason sanctions against Iran won't work: Smugglers