The administration of US President Donald Trump has imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), measures that include a ban on transactions and restrictions on access to resources, with a warning that the sanctions could also affect companies providing services to the court.
In a statement published by Reuters, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: “President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans” and announced that the US will “ban transactions with this rogue court, cut off its access to resources, and cripple its ability to operate.”
ICC Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan condemned the sanctions and told Reuters that the measures “must be condemned” because, as she stated, “the sanctions are aimed at undermining the rule of law at the international level and the work of an independent judicial institution. Our work will continue in all situations we deal with, in all investigations and proceedings we conduct.”
The text states that the Trump administration has long criticized the work of the ICC, which was established in 2002 to prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, and that Washington had previously imposed sanctions on certain prosecutors and judges. The latest measure, according to the source, goes much further as it could also affect companies providing services to the court itself.
The US Department of the Treasury immediately approved certain exemptions and issued several general licenses allowing specific transactions related to telecommunications, software, pension payments, and persons detained in ICC proceedings, the text states.
The text also recalls that the ICC has 125 member states, including all EU members and most NATO members, that the court is located in the Netherlands and has previously enjoyed public support from member states, as well as that court officials have taken preparatory measures for the possibility of expanded sanctions.
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