US Sanctions on International Criminal Court

Today, in a historically unprecedented move, the

United States has imposed sanctions on the International Criminal

Court as an institution.

This follows a series of designations against certain

independent judges and prosecutors serving the cause

of justice.

The Court firmly rejects these sanctions.

As an ICC judge myself, I can

assure you that the Court is not politically

motivated.

We are an independent and impartial judicial institution,

and our actions are guided only by the law and

evidence seeking to obstruct a

court of law from fulfilling its

judicial mandate is unacceptable.

It is an attack against sovereign states that have

created the Court.

It is an attack against the international legal order

more broadly.

It is an attack on the victims of mass atrocities

who have waited years, sometimes decades,

for those responsible to be held to account.

Every measure taken against the Court is

ultimately felt by those victims.

The Court was never meant to be replacement for

national justice systems. It is a court of last

resort and can only act where states are

unwilling or unable to genuinely

investigate or prosecute.

Its jurisdiction rests on a principle familiar to

every legal system in the world.

A state may bring to justice those who commit

crimes on its territory or those

crimes that are committed by its own nationals.

By joining the Rome Statute, State Parties

chose to exercise that authority together

through the Court.

Let me be clear: the ICC does not yield to

external threats that will only benefit those who

commit the most serious crimes of concern to the

international community.

Today, I reaffirm the Court's steadfast

commitment to discharging its mandate

fully with independence and

impartiality for the sake of victims.

This designation aims at disrupting the

Court's operations and intimidating those

who work for or cooperate with the Court.

The Court, for its part, will not be deterred.

Yet the Court cannot stand alone.

Its fate now rests also in the hands of the

state that create it.

The Rome Statute is a collective promise that

the most serious crimes of concern to the international

community as a whole must not go unpunished.

That promise is only as strong as the resolve of

those who made it.

There may be challenges,

but together with its State Parties, the Court has

made considerable efforts to ensure the continuity

and resilience of its activities.

The Court calls upon states to continue taking

concrete actions, including to ensure that the

Court continues to have the necessary means

to continue its work.

This is not just about defending a single institution,

but about safeguarding the international order

grounded upon the rule of law.

All of us must make a choice now

between the world where might is right

or the future based on the rule of law where

victims can continue to access justice.

In the face of such attacks, we cannot remain

indifferent.

All of us, including State Parties, have a

legal and moral duty to act in defense

of the international order.

To stand up for law, not force.

We will be judged by history for the choices

we make today.

I pledge to you the International Criminal Court

will continue its work undeterred

with a firm resolve that justice must

prevail.

Thank you.