Blockade
A blockade is a military tactic employed by one state to obstruct the commerce and communication of an enemy state, often targeting a specific coastline. The primary aim is to exert control over the sea, thereby undermining the enemy's economic and military capabilities. Historically, blockades have been used in various conflicts, such as the British blockades against Germany during the World Wars and the U.S. blockade of Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. International law stipulates specific conditions for a blockade to be considered legal, including official enactment, consistent patrolling of the blockaded area, and impartial enforcement. Blockades can also impact neutral vessels, with strict guidelines governing their seizure. In modern contexts, blockades have continued to be relevant, exemplified by the Israeli and Egyptian blockade of the Gaza Strip that began in 2007, which was a response to the political control of Hamas in the region. Overall, blockades raise complex legal, political, and humanitarian issues, often affecting civilian populations and international relations.
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Blockade
An attempt by a belligerent state to obstruct a defined part of an enemy coast to prevent commerce or communication with that enemy by allied or neutral nations. The main objective of most blockades is to secure control of the sea and, by this control, to economically and materially affect the war-making capacity of an enemy state. Other blockades, like those executed by Britain against Germany from 1914 to 1945 and from 1939 to 1945, are intended to protect communication lines and prevent enemy ships from entering one’s own waters.
International customary and treaty law of the twentieth century has defined five conditions of blockade. First, a blockade must be officially enacted by the government of a belligerent nation. Second, an actual and not a “paper” blockade must be enacted—that is, enemy waters must be patrolled at all times; otherwise, the blockade is not lawful. (Paper blockades were, however, common in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.) Third, a blockade must be enforced impartially. Fourth, a neutral vessel may not be seized unless it has committed egress (for example, left a blockaded port) or ingress (for example, entered a blockaded port). Fifth, any vessel that is seized must have prior knowledge of the blockade.
During the Cold War, the United States blockaded Cuba in what became known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. On October 22, 1962, President John F. Kennedy accused the Soviet Union under Premier Nikita S. Khrushchev of stationing nuclear weapons in Cuba and announced that, starting on October 24, the United States would blockade the island nation to prevent entry of such weapons and their use against the United States. Kennedy added that the United States would consider any Cuban missile attacks as an attack by the Soviet Union and that the United States would necessarily retaliate. After several days of escalating tension, Khrushchev announced that the Soviet Union would dismantle its weapons in Cuba; the United States removed nuclear weapons from Turkey the following year; and both nations began to talk about ending or limiting the nuclear arms race.
Blockades in the twenty-first century include Israel and Egypt’s active blockade of the Gaza Strip between 2007 and 2010. Israel had previously started to restrict the movement of people starting in 1991, after the first Palestinian intifada to protest Israeli occupation. With the second intifada in 2000, Israel tightened restrictions on Gaza residents traveling to Israel or the West Bank. After Israeli troops withdrew from Gaza in 2005, elections in 2006 brought Hamas, considered an anti-Israeli terrorist organization, to power. The European Union, Russia, United Nations, and the United States—known collectively as the Quartet on the Middle East—subsequently imposed economic sanctions on Gaza. Hamas took complete control of Gaza in June 2007 during the Battle of Gaza, leading Israel and Egypt to seal off Gaza completely. Although Israel and Egypt eased some travel restrictions in 2010, they continue to limit Gaza’s ability to export goods as of 2015.
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