US officials are continuing to make much of the “success” of the sanctions against Iran, but according to a number of experts they are actually accomplishing very little and probably will not do so in the future.

While the sanctions have done damage to Iran’s civilian economy, analysts see Iran’s policies as being “largely unaffected” by this. US officials have generally cited the sanctions more or less as an end unto themselves, and say they will set the stage for more sanctions in the future.

In fact they have done what Iran’s opposition was complaining about all along, and what all sactions do, damaged the civilian economy and affected the poorest Iranians while doing little to bite the government itself.

But as the IAEA’s most recent report indicates, the Iranian civilian nuclear program continues, and the IAEA continues to verify the non-diversion of material from this program. Also unchanged are repeated US threats to attack Iran over this program. In other words, nothing has really changed.

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