Washington, Oct 11. (dpa/GNA) – The United States is imposing sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court, the State Department said on Friday.
The measures will prohibit transactions with The Hague-based court, cut off its resources and severely restrict its ability to operate, the department said in a statement on Friday.
“President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans,” the statement said, describing the ICC as a “rogue court.” The United States has never joined the ICC and rejects its jurisdiction over US citizens, military personnel and political leaders.
Washington had previously imposed sanctions on individual judges and prosecutors at the court, which prosecutes war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
The State Department said it had delayed imposing sanctions on the institution itself, in the hope that the ICC or its member states would address US concerns, but neither had taken meaningful steps to do so.
It said Washington remained open to a diplomatic solution, but warned that further measures could follow. “Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC,” the statement said, warning that the United States would otherwise continue its campaign to dismantle the court “brick by brick.”
GNA