“President Trump will never allow the international criminal court to prosecute Americans,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement reviewed by Reuters. “That is why, today, the United States is sanctioning the international criminal court.”
The sanctions came on Friday, hours after Navi Pillay, a former judge of the court, won the Nobel Peace Prize. Rubio said Washington would “ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources and crippling its ability to operate.”
The Trump administration has been hostile to the ICC for some time and has already sanctioned its prosecutors and judges. Reuters reported that Friday’s step goes much further, because it could punish companies that provide services to the court itself. Reuters also said it puts Washington on a collision course with its European allies.
Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan said the sanctions “must be condemned” and told Reuters they would not halt the tribunal’s work.
A Nobel day with a sharp edge
Pillay opened her press conference by dedicating the prize to “survivors of international crimes.” She called on people to stand together in defence of the rule of law. Senior judges and human rights campaigners congratulated her, among them the president of the International Court of Justice, where she is also a former judge.
Israel reacted angrily. It called the award “the grotesque weaponisation of an award to legitimise anti-Israel hatred and prejudice.”
President Trump reposted a comment saying the Nobel committee had “shamed itself beyond repair and demeaned” the prize.
Sources
- US imposes sanctions on ICC, hours after former judge Pillay wins Nobel peace prize – as it happened
