A Review of US sanctions from The Perspective of Historical Sociology(1979 – 2015)

Iran-US relations entered a period of tension and conflict after the Islamic Revolution. A set of historical causes and their outcome at the time of the Iranian revolution provided the conditions for differences between the two countries. Over the past four decades, the United States has used a variety of tools to moderate or curb the Islamic Republic's regional and global behaviors and policies, one of which is sanctions. The imposition of these sanctions during different periods of the US presidency, according to the approach of the president-elect, has had its strengths and weaknesses. In the present study, using the two basic functions of the historical sociological method, namely "understanding the present" and "understanding how it evolved and changed", we first study the history of sanctions imposed on Iran and then present three levels of differences. (Theoretical, historical and strategic), the historical causes of these conflicts are examined. These levels are: 1) the historical background and roots of the conflict between the two countries 2) the intellectual and ideological background 3) the strategic and political differences.