The United States government has reiterated its plan to discredit the International Criminal Court (ICC) on the global stage after claiming that it had become a security threat against US sovereignty and that American citizens had been heavily scrutinised by the international tribunal.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio released a video online, while simultaneously publishing a statement in the Wall Street Journal, lashing out against the ICC’s use of statutes, compacts, and international laws to enforce its jurisdiction against the US.
He said that Washington is looking into penalising countries that are backing the ICC while still seeking military and financial support from the US.
The state secretary did not elaborate further on the possible acts of the US against foreign counterparts taking the side of the ICC but warned to “teach them the full meaning of American resolve.”
An unnamed official from the State Department said that some of the options that the US had been considering include travel bans, visa revocations and heavier sanctions.
The White House has previously rolled out an initial set of sanctions against ICC officials and organisations linked to the ICC, arguing that those connected to the Dutch-based international tribunal have become a threat to the American political and legal system.
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UN renews ICC’s mission in securing international justice
The United Nations (UN) has reiterated the contributions and mission of the ICC after its establishment in 2002, backed by the Member States, with UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric describing the ICC as a “critical cog in the international justice system.”
He said that the Member States have cast their support for creating the ICC in line with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to build an international body that would pursue protection and international justice for millions of people experiencing abuse of power and high-level crimes.
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ICC and its role
The ICC was founded in 1998 under a treaty and formally established in 2002 in The Hague, where countless former world leaders and high-level personalities have faced trials over their extensive alleged and proven crimes, usually involving crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide.
Its role is to enforce international jurisdiction on nations unwilling or unable to execute their own justice system.
The US government did not participate in the treaty, with Rubio arguing that his country “never agreed to a world tribunal that can override our own courts and the (US) Constitution.”
Currently, the ICC has issued warrants of arrest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Russian President Vladimir Putin, former Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina and Myanmar’s President Min Aung Hlaing.
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Eleni Poulios 
Elan Castanares 
Arwen Lehmann