Original Coverage & Source Attribution: kyivindependent.com
The U.S. on Oct. 9 imposed severe financial sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2023.
The new sanctions would prohibit transactions with the court after a grace period of six months. Any companies doing business with the court afterward can be punished by the U.S. government.
The foreign ministers of Canada, Denmark, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and the U.K. issued a joint statement in support of the ICC on Oct. 9.
“We… reaffirm our continued and unwavering support for the independence, impartiality, and integrity of the ICC,” they said. “As committed supporters of the ICC we regret and strongly disagree with the announcement of sanctions to be imposed upon the court by the United States.”
The ministers said that they appreciate “the work undertaken by the court to prepare for such measures so that the Court can continue to fulfil its mandate under the Rome Statute and we underline our unwavering support in enabling the court in doing so.”
“Nevertheless, if put into effect, these sanctions will have a significant impact on the court’s work, its dedicated staff and their families,” they said. “…. We remain both united in our support for the ICC and committed to engaging in constructive and inclusive dialogue with non-States Parties as we prepare for the Assembly of States Parties in December 2026. We will continue to work together to support the court’s vital work, uphold the rules-based international system, and advance accountability.”
In 2023, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Putin and another Russian official, Maria Lvova-Belova, for “unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation.”
Previously, U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration had also sanctioned many of the court’s judges individually.
Trump has criticized the ICC’s attempts to investigate alleged crimes committed by U.S. military personnel and its actions against Israel.
In 2024, the court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, then Israel’s defense minister, as part of an investigation into alleged war crimes in Gaza.
The court, set up in 2002 and based at The Hague in the Netherlands, investigates genocide, war crimes, and other offenses.
