US threatens to dismantle war crimes court with sweeping sanctions
The U.S. State Department announced on Friday that Washington is levying sweeping sanctions against the International Criminal Court. The broad punitive measures mark a severe escalation in American pushback against the tribunal’s jurisdiction, investigations, and prosecutorial activities.
- Economy
- DPA
- Published Date: 09:17 PM 09 October 2026
The United States is imposing sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court, the State Department said on Friday.
Under the sanctions, any ICC assets held in the US will be frozen and must be reported to the Treasury Department. US citizens will also be prohibited from conducting any transactions with the court.
However, the sanctions will not take effect for 180 days, allowing time for diplomatic efforts to address Washington's concerns about the ICC, according to the State Department.
The measures will prohibit transactions with The Hague-based tribunal and cut off its resources, with the aim of "crippling" its operations if no solution is reached, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
Rubio did not outline specific demands, but mentioned the need to protect US military personnel.
"President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans," the statement said, describing the ICC as a "rogue court."
Rubio noted that the US had never joined the court.
"We don't need it. And we don't want it," he said, adding that both Republicans and Democrats had for decades rejected the idea that the ICC could prosecute US citizens, military personnel or political leaders.
The Trump administration had previously imposed sanctions on 13 judges and prosecutors at the court.
The State Department said it had delayed imposing sanctions on the institution itself in the hope that the tribunal or its member states would address US concerns, but neither had taken meaningful steps to do so.
"Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC," the statement said, warning that Washington would otherwise continue its campaign to dismantle the war crimes court "brick by brick."
The latest measures also come amid tensions over the ICC's decision to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on suspicion of war crimes in the Gaza Strip.
The ICC strongly condemned the sanctions, describing them as an "unprecedented step" and an attack on the international legal order.
"It is an assault on the rule of law and on the very foundations of the international legal order which strikes at the simple principle that no one stands above the law," the court said in a statement.
The ICC accused Washington of attempting to "obstruct the course of justice."
The European Commission also expressed concern over the US move and pledged to continue cooperating with the court to ensure it could operate effectively.
The commission said it hoped for dialogue with Washington, noting that the sanctions would not take effect for another six months.
The announcement came just hours after South African jurist Navi Pillay, who served as an ICC judge from 2003 to 2008, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Pillay warned that the award came at a time of growing pressure on international law.
"This worsening reality is particularly visible with the attacks on the International Criminal Court," she said shortly before the US sanctions were announced.
Pillay previously headed a UN commission that accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. Rubio made no mention of her in his statement.
In September, President Donald Trump called on countries to withdraw from the ICC during an address to the United Nations General Assembly.
Germany, the Netherlands and other European Union countries subsequently pledged their full support for the court.
Under the sanctions, any ICC assets held in the US will be frozen and must be reported to the Treasury Department. US citizens will also be prohibited from conducting any transactions with the court.
However, the sanctions will not take effect for 180 days, allowing time for diplomatic efforts to address Washington's concerns about the ICC, according to the State Department.
The measures will prohibit transactions with The Hague-based tribunal and cut off its resources, with the aim of "crippling" its operations if no solution is reached, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
Rubio did not outline specific demands, but mentioned the need to protect US military personnel.
"President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans," the statement said, describing the ICC as a "rogue court."
Rubio noted that the US had never joined the court.
"We don't need it. And we don't want it," he said, adding that both Republicans and Democrats had for decades rejected the idea that the ICC could prosecute US citizens, military personnel or political leaders.
The Trump administration had previously imposed sanctions on 13 judges and prosecutors at the court.
The State Department said it had delayed imposing sanctions on the institution itself in the hope that the tribunal or its member states would address US concerns, but neither had taken meaningful steps to do so.
"Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC," the statement said, warning that Washington would otherwise continue its campaign to dismantle the war crimes court "brick by brick."
The latest measures also come amid tensions over the ICC's decision to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on suspicion of war crimes in the Gaza Strip.
The ICC strongly condemned the sanctions, describing them as an "unprecedented step" and an attack on the international legal order.
"It is an assault on the rule of law and on the very foundations of the international legal order which strikes at the simple principle that no one stands above the law," the court said in a statement.
The ICC accused Washington of attempting to "obstruct the course of justice."
The European Commission also expressed concern over the US move and pledged to continue cooperating with the court to ensure it could operate effectively.
The commission said it hoped for dialogue with Washington, noting that the sanctions would not take effect for another six months.
The announcement came just hours after South African jurist Navi Pillay, who served as an ICC judge from 2003 to 2008, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Pillay warned that the award came at a time of growing pressure on international law.
"This worsening reality is particularly visible with the attacks on the International Criminal Court," she said shortly before the US sanctions were announced.
Pillay previously headed a UN commission that accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. Rubio made no mention of her in his statement.
In September, President Donald Trump called on countries to withdraw from the ICC during an address to the United Nations General Assembly.
Germany, the Netherlands and other European Union countries subsequently pledged their full support for the court.
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