Sanction lifted on a divided land (5)
I believe the answer is:
korea
'divided land' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'sanction lifted on a' is the wordplay.
'sanction' becomes 'ok' (to OK something is to approve or sanction it).
'lifted' says the letters should be written in reverse (going up in down clue).
'on' becomes 're' ('on' can be mean 'with reference to').
'ok' reversed gives 'ko'.
'ko'+'re'+'a'='KOREA'
(Other definitions for korea that I've seen before include "Former Asian country" , "Asian territory, two countries" , "Divided Asian peninsula" , "region in Asia" , "Eastern country" .)