U.S. imposes new sanctions on International Criminal Court
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has imposed sweeping new sanctions on the International Criminal Court as part of its campaign to dismantle the tribunal over investigations into the United States and its allies, including Israel, reports BritPanorama.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions on Friday following the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to South African jurist Navi Pillay, a former judge at the ICC and other international courts. The sanctions are part of Trump’s long-standing grievances regarding the court.
“We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources and crippling its ability to operate against us,” Rubio stated in a video address posted to social media. “The United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this fake ICC.”
The sanctions will sever the court’s access to U.S.-based financial services and technology companies, including the use of U.S. dollars. A timeline of six months has been set for U.S. companies and individuals with business ties to the court to cease operations.
The ICC denounced the sanctions as an attack on the rule of law and the foundations of international order, themes that Rubio had addressed merely two days prior in a speech near the Acropolis in Athens.
“It is an attempt to obstruct the course of justice and to prevent the court from doing what it was created to do,” the ICC stated. “It is an assault on the rule of law and on the very foundations of the international legal order which strikes at the simple principle that no one stands above the law.”
ICC President Tomoko Akane, a citizen of U.S. ally Japan, stated that the court would “continue to fully discharge its mandate, with independence and impartiality, acting only on the basis of the law and the evidence, for the sake of the countless victims of grave crimes.”
She also appealed for support from other ICC members. “This is not just about defending a single institution, but about safeguarding the international order grounded upon the rule of law,” Akane added.
Rights groups condemned the sanctions, with Amnesty International senior director Erika Guevara Rosas saying, “This existential attack must fail. States must take concrete action to resist the imposition of these measures and actively protect the Court.”
The Netherlands, the ICC’s host country, has been preparing for weeks for the potential sanctions. The EU “blocking statute” could serve as a means of protecting European court staff by preventing compliance with U.S. measures, prompting Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen to label it the “nuclear option” in counteracting such sanctions.
A joint statement from Canada, Denmark, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom expressed strong disagreement with the U.S. sanctions.
“We will continue to work together to support the court’s vital work, uphold the rules-based international system, and advance accountability,” the statement read.
The statement warned that the sanctions, if implemented, would significantly impact the court’s operations and its dedicated staff, who work daily to bring those accused of serious international crimes to justice.
Rubio suggested that U.S. allies should align with the U.S. actions. “If they do not, the United States will continue its campaign to dismantle the ICC, piece by piece, until Americans are threatened no longer,” he asserted.
Several nations have opted out of the court this year, including Venezuela and Chad, with the South Pacific island nation of Naoero being the latest to announce its departure.
