President Trump, other US officials say the ICC should not have the authority to investigate and prosecute Americans
The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands. Established by the 1998 Rome Statute, it serves as a court of last resort, meaning it only steps in when national courts cannot or will not act. Photo: REUTERS/file
The Trump administration is launching an effort to dismantle what it calls the threat to US sovereignty by the International Criminal Court (ICC), a State Department official said on Monday.
President Donald Trump and other US officials, such as former president George W Bush, have long said the ICC should not have the authority to investigate and prosecute Americans, particularly members of the military. Reuters earlier this year found the Trump administration backed sanctions against ICC officials in part to head off any future attempts to hold him or his officials accountable for US military action overseas.
The State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a wide range of options is under consideration to target the ICC, including travel bans, visa revocations, increased sanctions against the ICC and affiliated organisations, and diplomatic pressure on other nations to withdraw from the ICC.
The ICC was established in 2002 by the international community to prosecute war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. It asserts jurisdiction only if a member state is unable or unwilling to prosecute atrocities itself. The US has never been a member of the court.
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Trump’s hostility towards the court goes back to his first term. It manifested again with a plan to punish ICC officials, an idea hatched in November 2024 when Trump was re-elected, and the ICC issued an arrest warrant for his ally, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.
Last month, three International Criminal Court judges sued Trump and his administration over sanctions imposed on them last year, arguing the measures were unlawful.
The State Department official on Monday said Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top US officials are pressuring other countries as part of a campaign “to diplomatically isolate the International Criminal Court and ensure it cannot target Americans”.
In March 2020, ICC prosecutors opened an investigation in Afghanistan that included looking into possible crimes by US troops, but since 2021, it has deprioritised the role of the US and focused on alleged crimes committed by the Afghan government and Taliban forces.
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The official said nations that partner with US law enforcement, host a US military presence, or benefit from the broader US security umbrella “are being called upon to reject the ICC’s purported authority to prosecute American officials and servicemen”.
Nations that refuse to reject the ICC while relying on US assistance are likely to come under increased scrutiny, the official said.
“We will watch with interest which nations join ranks with us against this threat to Americans who are willing to risk their lives to protect others,” the official said.
