The Trump administration has imposed sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court, blocking its assets under US jurisdiction and giving American companies and individuals six months to wind down business with the tribunal.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the measures on Friday, October 9, accusing the court of politicisation and improperly pursuing Americans and Israelis over alleged war crimes.
“We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources and crippling its ability to operate against us,” Rubio said in a video address posted on social media. “The United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this fake ICC.” Rubio said concerns about the court crossed party lines but argued that President Donald Trump was willing to take stronger action.
“Both parties agree on this, but only President Trump has the resolve to take the action needed to end this threat once and for all,” he said. “Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC.” The ICC condemned the sanctions, describing them as an effort to obstruct justice and undermine international law.
“It is an attempt to obstruct the course of justice and to prevent the court from doing what it was created to do,” the court said in a statement. “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 said the tribunal 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 appealed to member states to support the court. “This is not just about defending a single institution, but about safeguarding the international order grounded upon the rule of law.”
Rubio said Washington expected its allies to support action against the ICC, whose members include several European NATO countries and Japan. “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 said.
Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen called the announcement “a deeply regrettable step. We stand firm in defence of the court.” Writing on X, he said the six-month transition period “creates scope for dialogue”. The Netherlands hosts the ICC and has remained a strong supporter of the institution.
The sanctions were announced after former ICC judge Navi Pillay was named the Nobel Peace Prize recipient. However, according to the Associated Press, the measures had been planned before the Nobel announcement. The ICC was established to prosecute grave international crimes, including war crimes and crimes against humanity, where national authorities do not pursue cases.