DEVELOPMENT OF THE SYSTEM OF SANCTIONS AGAINST NATURAL AND LEGAL PERSONS, GROUPS AND NON-STATE ENTITIES CONNECTED WITH TERRORISM IN THE LEGAL ORDER OF THE UNITED NATIONS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Abstract

The United Nations Security Council’s system of sanctions directed against persons and entities associated with terrorism has evolved over the years in the direction of ever greater protection of these persons and entities’ procedural rights at the time of imposing sanctions on them. Namely, this system of sanctions was characterised by numerous shortcomings which for the most part amounted to a lack of respect for the procedural rights of the natural and legal persons on which sanctions are imposed. The protection of the rights of the persons and entities on which sanctions are imposed no doubt includes taking into account, upon their imposition, certain principles. However, these sanctions’ peculiarities and aim must equally be taken into account. The former include the sanctions’ preventive nature, the
necessary restrictions of certain procedural rights and the far-reaching consequences of their imposition. The latter consists of preventing the financing of terrorist groups and their activities. By taking into account the peculiarities of these sanctions and eliminating their shortcomings as described, the UN Security Council’s system of sanctions responded to criticism concerning violations of the said rights. Thus, with time and under the influence of, inter alia, the Court of Justice of the European Union, these shortcomings came to be eliminated or were at least mitigated precisely in order to satisfy the requirements for a greater degree of protection of the rights of the said persons. It is therefore to be expected that this trend will continue.