Interesting point, Mr. Gandhi. I would like to say that in both examples mentioned above (N. Korea and Cuba), there were alternative trading partners. In Cuba’s case when Eisenhower banned the import of sugar, the Soviet Union opted to purchase the excess supply. Regarding N. Korea, trade can be found elsewhere in countries such as Russia and most importantly China. It could be argued that economic tools were inappropriately used, as the severity to the economies was not impactful enough to incite change. Having said this, one could claim that Cuba suffered tremendously due to its geographic proximity to the US. For Fidel Castro, however, this allowed for a chance to build hatred towards the US and accuse the US of acting belligerently.