US reasserts pressure on International Criminal Court
In the media image: Tingey Injiry via Unsplash
The Trump administration is seeking to further weaken the International Criminal Court (ICC). In ‘Trouw’ newspaper, Nico Schrijver, professor emeritus of international law, says the move reflects a broader hostility towards international institutions and risks undermining the international legal order.
In an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a campaign to dismantle the ICC. According to Rubio, the Court has overstepped its authority and placed itself above the United States. The US would, if necessary, dismantle the Court ‘brick by brick’.
The United States has not recognised the ICC since its establishment, maintaining that the Court has no jurisdiction over US citizens. Washington has also strongly opposed the ICC's actions against its ally Israel, including the Court's decision to seek legal action involving Israeli officials.
Schrijver described the US attack on the Court as ‘worrying and short-sighted’, adding: ‘It is in line with far-right extremist ideology that is fiercely opposed to institutions such as the WTO, UNESCO and the UN, which are precisely what hold the world together’. He warned that further efforts to undermine the ICC could weaken the enforcement of international law and the prosecution of war crimes.
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Read the full article in Trouw (in Dutch)