US Admits Its Sanctions Have ‘Cost Opportunities’ For Ordinary Zimbabweans

The US government has admitted sanctions it imposed on Zimbabwe nearly two decades ago have “cost opportunities” for Zimbabweans but denies claims the diplomatic measures were tailored to shut down the troubled country’s economy.

Speaking from Washington in a virtual press briefing on the measures, US Department of State Sanctions Coordinator Ambassador James O’Brien admitted sanctions deterred some businesses from Zimbabwe.

“…We are not engaged in a comprehensive effort to close the Zimbabwean economy. We don’t sanction banks. We aren’t stopping certain kinds of transactions,” he said.

The diplomat said the US was aware that sanctions have discouraged a lot of investment flowing into the troubled country, adding that efforts were being put in place to allay investors’ fears.

“We’re aware that because of the depth of the problems and the duration of this program, there probably are a lot of companies who believe that doing business in Zimbabwe is just too difficult. And that does cost opportunities for the people of Zimbabwe.

“Whether that’s the result of the underlying mismanagement and corruption, or whether our sanctions add to it, that’s something we’re willing to talk with companies about, because we do want legitimate businesses to be able to do legitimate business in places. And that’s true anywhere around the world, including in Zimbabwe.

Ambassador O’Brien said sanctions were “focused on the people who are responsible for and profit from human rights abuses, corruption, and antidemocratic actions”.

“Our sanctions are only one part of a policy to improve the situation there, and we’ll keep evaluating them with our partners as part of the policy going forward,” he said.

The US has maintained its measures since they came into effect under the contentious sanctions law, ZDERA 2001.

The sanctions have been reviewed annually with some Zimbabweans’ names being removed gradually after the superpower satisfied itself the individuals were no longer a threat to democracy and human rights in Zimbabwe.

The US earlier this year delisted 11 from its blacklist of Zimbabweans slapped with targeted sanctions.

O’Brien said the US has consulted SADC and the AU on the situation in Zimbabwe.

SADC has maintained the sanctions should go as they have caused a migration crisis in the region after Zimbabwean authorities have cited their continued existence as the stumbling block to economic recovery.

Zimbabwe is one of a close 30 different countries around the world in Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, Middle East that have been sanctioned by the US under specific country programs. ZimLive