Trump Imposes Sanctions On International Criminal Court
Trump Imposes Sanctions On International Criminal Court
U.S. President Donald Trump
United States President Donald Trump’s administration has imposed sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), escalating its campaign against the tribunal over cases involving American and Israeli officials.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions on Friday, saying Washington would prohibit transactions with the court and seek to restrict its ability to operate.
The measures target the court as an institution and extend beyond previous US sanctions against individual ICC judges and prosecutors. They could also affect companies providing services to the tribunal, including financial, insurance and software providers.
The US Treasury has, however, issued exemptions allowing certain transactions involving the ICC, including some telecommunications, software and pension payments.
Rubio accused the court of acting against US interests and said the administration would not allow it to prosecute American citizens.
“President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans,” Rubio said, adding that the sanctions were intended to restrict the court’s resources and operations.
Washington has repeatedly criticised the ICC over arrest warrants issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as its earlier investigation into alleged crimes by US personnel in Afghanistan.
The Afghanistan investigation has since been closed.
The United States is not a member of the ICC, which was established in 2002 to prosecute individuals accused of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression under its jurisdiction.
The court condemned the sanctions, with Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan saying the measures were intended to undermine international law and the work of an independent judicial institution.
“Our work will continue across all our situations, our investigations and our prosecutions,” Khan said.
The announcement came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her work advancing international justice.
