Publications & Research
Dr. Ruth Gibson • Scholar at the Center for International Security and Cooperation
Research on the intersection of geopolitics, sanctions, and global health, with focus on maternal and child health in conflict-affected settings.
Featured Publication
Mistaken Sanctions Relief: How U.S. General License 134A Benefits Russian Energy Companies Implicated in War Crimes Against Ukrainian Children
Stanford University (2026)
This companion report to the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab provides an overview of U.S. General License 134A and the current state of U.S., EU, and UK sanctions targeting Gazprom, Rosneft, their subsidiaries, trade unions, and corporate leadership. Yale HRL has established with high confidence that Gazprom and Rosneft, together with their subsidiaries and trade unions, facilitated the transportation and re-education of at least 2,158 Ukrainian children between February 2022 and March 2025. The temporary 30-day sanctions relief provided by General License 134A will financially benefit these two companies alleged to be implicated in war crimes. This general license should not be extended by OFAC after it expires on April 11, 2026.
Recent Publications
Health safeguards under the UN’s reimposition of sanctions on Iran
The Lancet (2025)
On Sept 28, 2025, the UN Security Council snapback under Resolution 2231 reinstated multilateral sanctions on Iran related to insufficient compliance in international oversight of its nuclear programme. This Correspondence...
The impact of aid sanctions on maternal and child mortality, 1990–2019: a panel analysis
Lancet Glob Health (2025)
Background: Aid sanctions are a type of financial punishment imposed on a country by other countries or international organisations in response to a political coup, armed conflict, or human rights abuses....
Geopolitical coercion : implications for global health
University of British Columbia (2021)
The world order is going through a shift from multilateral to unilateral responses to international conflicts. The United Nations Security Council has provisions for resolving conflicts by way of joint...
The Role of Health Researchers in Documenting HealthSuffering and Crimes against Humanity Resulting from 2018US Sanctions against Iran
Sanctions have been prominent in the history of Iran-US political relations beginning with Iran’s 1979Islamic Revolution. The US response to the hostage crisis (1979-1981) was to impose sanctions freezingall Iranian...
Prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and analysis
J Glob Health (2015)
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disorder that affects the small joints of the body. It is one of the leading causes of chronic morbidity in high-income countries, but little...
Managing ethical dilemmas in community-based participatory research with vulnerable populations
This article describes two ethical dilemmas encountered by our research team during a project working with undocumented immigrants in Toronto, Canada. This article aims to be transparent about the problems...
Global age-sex-specific mortality, life expectancy, and population estimates in 204 countries
Comprehensive, comparable, and timely estimates of demographic metrics—including life expectancy and age-specific mortality—are essential for evaluating, understanding, and addressing trends in population health. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of...
Academic Profiles & Databases
"My research seeks to bridge the gap between foreign policy and public health, providing evidence-based insights to minimize humanitarian harm while maintaining effective governance and security frameworks."