When signatories of international agreements fail to comply unintentionally,
sanctioning rules designed to deter intentional noncompliance
are tested. To provide signatories with the best treaty
value, we find that remedies in case of unilateral defection must
account for the nature of the inequality between treaty partners,
as well as the type of mixed motive game they are engaged in. Trigger
type schemes, that rely on punishment by mutual defection,
are the norm for sanctioning in treaty texts. Inequality is
addressed by proposing that the process leading to retaliation be
accelerated when a weaker partner faces the noncompliance of a
stronger partner
