The Global Sanctions Database (GSDB)The updated GSDB (2021) covers 1101 publicly traceable, multilateral, plurilateral, and purely bilateral sanction cases over the 1950-2019 time period. The most recent GSDB includes 381 previously unrecorded sanction cases among which 75 emerged during 2016-2019. Additionally, the GSDB classifies these sanctions on the basis of three important dimensions. First, by the type(s) of sanctions considered (e.g., trade sanctions vs. financial sanctions vs. travel sanctions, etc.). Second, by the political objective(s) behind the observed sanction(s). In particular, the GSDB systematically groups sanction objectives into distinct categories (e.g., policy change, destabilization of a regime, war prevention, human rights, etc.) of recorded policy objectives. Third, by the perceived degree of success for each identified sanction, captured by five distinct categories ranging from failed sanctions to the target's full acceptance of the sender's demands.
