The United States is demanding that the International Criminal Court (ICC) change its founding document so that the court cannot investigate the actions of the US President Donald Trump and his closest officials.
Reuters reports this, citing sources.
If ICC does not agree, Washington has threatened to impose new sanctions — against individual members of the court or even ICC as an institution. American officials also want ICC to close its investigation into US military actions in Afghanistan.
They also want the court to drop the case against Israelʼs leadership over the war in Gaza. The Trump administration says it fears prosecution by ICC after the politicianʼs presidential term ends.
According to Reuters, the US has already imposed sanctions on nine ICC staff, including judges and prosecutors. But Washington has not yet imposed sanctions on the court itself, a move that would paralyze its work.
Any amendments to the Rome Statute would require a vote by all Rome Statute member states. However, it is unlikely that all countries would vote in favor of this.
The International Criminal Court is the only court in the world with the right and jurisdiction to prosecute heads of state for the most serious crimes. ICC is investigating, among other things, the forced deportation of Ukrainian children and Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure.
- ICC issued arrest warrants for Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian childrenʼs rights commissioner, on March 17, 2023. They are accused of overseeing the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, a war crime.
- In February, the US expanded its sanctions against the International Criminal Court and prosecutor Karim Khan, who issued the arrest warrant for Putin.
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