"Congress and the administration have made clear the need to apply vigorous sanctions against the Burmese junta as long as it continues to suppress democratic dissent," said Adam J. Szubin, director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
But at the same time, a far more vigorous sanctions policy against Iran's nuclear program has gone into effect on Mr. Obama's watch, with Europe agreeing to impose an oil embargo on Iran, a step that was unthinkable as recently as four years ago.
However, as with economic sanctions, vigorous and constant enforcement will be necessary on personal restrictions.
Manufacturers, labor unions and politicians from the Midwest have been among the most vigorous in calling for sanctions, but there were indications on Wednesday that policy experts were increasingly in favor of tough action.
The spotty nature of Iran's responses explains why the phrase "full supervision" is so important to United Nations inspectors and the group of Western allies who have been the most vigorous in enforcing the sanctions.
Vocabulary: opposition, resolution, dissent, vigorous, loath, bucked, dissipated, sanctions, provocation, deployed, repel, strictures, trumps, Achilles' heel, trickle Extension Activities: 1. Write a research paper examining the role of the president as it is defined by the Constitution.
While calling for a vigorous enforcement of United Nations sanctions, Glyn Davies, Washington's special envoy on North Korea, also appealed Thursday to the North's new leader, Kim Jong-un, not to miss opportunities for a new beginning, stressing that Washington could not improve ties with the North without progress in inter-Korean relations.
The United Arab Emirates has taken more vigorous actions to enforce multilateral sanctions and tighten export control laws than the editorial suggests.
Daniel Yergin, whose new book, "The Quest," describes the oil politics of dealing with states like Iran, noted in an interview that "given the relative tightness of the market, it will require careful construction of the sanctions combined with vigorous efforts to bring alternative supplies into the market".
These sanctions must be vigorous and unequivocal, and we must also put pressure on the Government of South Africa which, by its 'silent diplomacy', has in fact simply bought more time for Mugabe's regime.
"Despite a vigorous attorney discipline process in New Jersey, the total number of sanctions handed out was 237, which is about one-third of a percent of the number of lawyers," Mr. Erison said.
