An arms embargo is a restriction or a set of sanctions that applies solely to weaponry, and may also apply to "dual-use technology". An arms embargo may serve one or more purposes:
United States President Jimmy Carter imposed an arms embargo on the military government of Argentina in 1977 in response to human rights abuses.[2]
An arms embargo was put in place with other economic sanctions by the European Economic Community within a week of the 1982 invasion of the Falkland Islands by Argentina, two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic, an EEC member.[3] The European nations ended the embargo after the end of the ensuing Falklands War; Argentina looked to Western European countries and Israel for arms supplies during the US embargo until it was lifted in 1989.[2]
The United States government imposed an arms embargo against Indonesia in 1999 due to human rights violations in East Timor. The embargo was lifted in 2005.
The United States imposed economic sanctions against Iran following the Iranian Revolution in 1979. However, to secure the release of American hostages, several senior Reagan Administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran in the 1980s, in a scandal called the Iran–Contra affair.[4] In 1995 the US expanded sanctions to include firms dealing with the Iranian government.[5]
In March 2007, UN Security Council Resolution 1747 tightened the sanctions imposed on Iran in connection with the Iranian nuclear program. The UN sanctions were lifted on 16 January 2016.
In September 2020, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the imposition of an arms embargo on the Iranian Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics and other entities involved in Iran's nuclear program, including the government of disputed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro for providing weapons to Iran.[6]
On 18 October 2020, Iran announced that the United Nations conventional arms embargo imposed on the country in 2007 got expired. The embargo barred Iran from purchasing arms, including tanks and fighter jets, from foreign nations. The embargo was lifted as per the conditions under Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world leaders, despite the objections from the United States.[7] [8]
The United States and the European Union stopped exporting arms to China after 1989, due to the Chinese government's violent suppression of protests in Tiananmen Square. In 2004-05, there was some debate in the EU over whether to lift the embargo.[9] [10]
The arms embargo of South Africa from 1977 extended to dual-use items. The embargo was lifted by Resolution 919 in 1994.
To protest the Vietnam War, Sweden imposed an arms embargo on the United States in 1966.[11] This notably deprived Navy SEALs of the Carl Gustav m/45 submachine gun, resulting in the creation of the Smith & Wesson M76.
The countries included in the list are under arms embargo of the United Nations or another international organization (EU, OSCE and others) or country. In some cases the arms embargo is supplemented by a general trade embargo, other sanctions (financial) or travel ban for specific persons. In some cases the arms embargo applies to any entity residing or established in the country, but in others it is partial – the recognized government forces and international peacekeepers are exempted from the embargo.