I think I read the same piece a while ago, or something very similar to it. I'm not entirely sure what to think of it, I'd have to do some in-depth study to really have an informed opinion and chances are the effectiveness depends on the country as well; I'm not sure if generalizing "all sanctions are {good,bad}" across all countries is a good idea, as North-Korea is not the same as Iran. One case where sanctions and other pressure probably helped is ending apartheid in South-Africa.