International Criminal Court chief says US sanctions seek to 'obstruct couse of justice'

International Criminal Court President Tomoko Akane on Monday denounced US sanctions against the institution, calling them an attempt to obstruct justice, as she presented the court's annual report to the UN General Assembly.

Addressing the assembly virtually, Akane said the sanctions were imposed on Oct. 9, the same day the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to Navi Pillay, a former judge at the court.

"The contrast could not be starker," she said.

Akane said the move followed sanctions against 13 independent judges and prosecutors, including herself, and "strikes at the heart of the sovereign equality of states."

"It is an attempt to obstruct the course of justice and to prevent the court from doing what it was created to do," she said.

Akane stressed that the court "will continue to fully discharge its mandate with independence and impartiality."

She warned that when judges are punished for their decisions, "it is not only those judges who are targeted, but judicial independence itself."

Akane urged all UN member states to take concrete action, individually and collectively, to defend the court and the principles of the Rome Statute.

She also said six states had notified the court of their withdrawal during the reporting period, while another had since taken steps to withdraw.

Akane stressed that withdrawing from the court did not relieve states of obligations arising during their membership or affect proceedings already underway.