U.S. Secretary of State Rubio Calls for International Criminal Court Dismantling
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a U.S. initiative to pressure allies to abandon the International Criminal Court, arguing the tribunal threatens American sovereignty, while legal experts say the claims misrepresent the court’s jurisdiction.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Monday a campaign to pressure other nations to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying the tribunal interferes with U.S. military and law-enforcement operations and endangers American sovereignty. In an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal and a video posted to X, Rubio warned that U.S. officials could be “dragged before an international court” and face prosecution for defending their country.
State Department officials said the plan would involve diplomatic pressure and possible sanctions, travel bans or visa restrictions on countries that continue to recognize the ICC’s authority while receiving U.S. assistance. A spokesperson told CNN that “nations that refuse to reject the ICC’s false authority … are likely to come under increased scrutiny.”
Three international legal scholars disputed Rubio’s characterization of the court. Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, said the ICC does not claim jurisdiction over conduct in the United States and that Rubio’s statements “ignore the sovereign right of other nations to invoke the ICC for crimes committed on their territory.”
The ICC, based in The Hague, can investigate crimes only in states that have ratified the 2002 Rome Statute. The United States has not ratified the treaty, and the court has not opened investigations on U.S. soil. The court’s prosecutor, Karim Khan, has opened investigations in Ukraine, Israel-Palestine and Afghanistan, and has issued arrest warrants for Israeli officials.
President Donald Trump previously declared a national emergency targeting the ICC and imposed sanctions on several ICC officials and related human-rights actors. It remains unclear how Rubio’s latest initiative will affect the court’s operations. A former senior U.S. sanctions official, speaking anonymously, said any broader sanctions could “pre-emptively” limit U.S. interaction with the ICC and affect American companies or banks that do business with the tribunal.