Wartime Commercial Policy and Trade between Enemies

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Published: Summer 2021

Loading food supplies on a train, Western Front, during World War I. This photograph shows men loading crates of food into a train. One man is standing on a huge stack of crates, sliding boxes down a makeshift chute. Other men are taking the boxes on sack-barrows and putting them on the waiting train. There is no indication of where this was taken, but it is probably near the docks where the supplies were stored before being sent to the Front. These men are likely to have been members of the Army Service Corps, who were responsible for the distribution and transport of supplies. They received very little recognition but without these men, war on such a large scale would have been impossible.

During war, states seek to maximize revenue from trade while minimizing the opponent’s ability to benefit militarily from trade. States continue to trade with their enemies in products that their opponents take a long time to convert into military capability and that are essential to the domestic economy. As a war’s expected duration increases, the number of prohibited products also increases. Additionally, trade is unlikely to deter war between highly interdependent states.

Recommended citation

Mariya Grinberg, "Wartime Commercial Policy and Trade between Enemies ," International Security, Vol. 46, No. 1 (Summer 2021), pp. 9–52, https://doi.org/10.1162/isec_a_00412.

Asia & the Pacific Economic Policy Economics & Global Affairs Europe International Relations International Security Program North America Sanctions Trade

Recommended citation

Mariya Grinberg, "Wartime Commercial Policy and Trade between Enemies ," International Security, Vol. 46, No. 1 (Summer 2021), pp. 9–52, https://doi.org/10.1162/isec_a_00412.