Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced new sanctions Tuesday against the president of the International Criminal Court and one of its senior trial lawyers, intensifying the Trump administration’s confrontation with the Hague-based tribunal over its efforts to prosecute officials from countries that do not recognize its jurisdiction.
The latest sanctions target ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye. Rubio described the move as part of “our unwavering mission to protect Americans from this sham of a court.”
The United States is not a member of the Rome Statute, the international treaty that established the ICC and defines its authority. Rubio has also urged other nations to cut their ties with the court.
“These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction,” Rubio said in a statement.
Under the sanctions, Americans are generally prohibited from conducting transactions with Akane and Seye and could face penalties for doing so. The measures also effectively cut the two ICC officials off from the American financial system.
The ICC responded by criticizing the administration’s action, telling The Hill that “measures targeting judges, prosecutors and staff who work towards the fulfilment of the mandate that was conferred to the ICC by States undermine the rule of law.”
“When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk,” the statement continued.
The court vowed that it remains “undeterred and stands firmly behind its personnel and behind victims of unimaginable atrocities.”
“The Court will continue to fully discharge its mandate with independence and impartiality, in full accordance with the Rome Statute and in the interest of victims of international crimes,” the court added.
The ICC is expected to issue a more extensive official response to the sanctions early Wednesday.
Rubio had signaled last month that the administration intended to dramatically increase pressure on the court, promising to use American diplomatic and governmental power to dismantle the institution “brick by brick.” Among the measures he outlined were additional sanctions, travel restrictions, visa cancellations, penalties targeting organizations affiliated with the ICC and diplomatic efforts encouraging other countries to leave the court.
The Trump administration has already sanctioned several ICC judges and prosecutors following the tribunal’s issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, who previously served as Israel’s defense minister, in connection with the Gaza war.
Washington’s dispute with the ICC predates the Gaza case. The United States has also strongly objected to the court’s previous investigation into the conduct of American military personnel in Afghanistan.
The administration’s sanctions campaign has triggered a series of legal challenges in American courts. Three ICC judges filed a lawsuit in New York in June arguing that sanctions imposed against them by the Trump administration violate U.S. law.
Two human rights organizations filed a separate lawsuit in July seeking to block sanctions against ICC officials. The groups argued that the administration’s actions had produced a “chilling effect” on their efforts to document alleged Israeli crimes against Palestinians.
Four additional human rights organizations filed another lawsuit against the Trump administration last week, contending that the sanctions imposed on ICC personnel are unlawfully obstructing their work involving international criminal justice.
