U.S. threatens to cripple ICC as Trump administration imposes new sanctions

United States Capitol - Credit: - License: CC-BY Politics Friday, 9 October 2026 - 17:06

The United States is imposing additional sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, according to a statement. “We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off its resources, and crippling its ability to operate,” the statement said.

“They want more power, and they want it at the expensive of our sovereignty as a nation,” said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “And President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans. And that’s why today, the United States has sanctioned the International Criminal Court. We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources, and crippling their ability to operate against us. The United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this fake ICC," Rubio stated in a video on X.

The United States has long opposed the International Criminal Court (ICC), in part because it issued an arrest warrant in 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several of his ministers. Israel is a close U.S. ally. Washington has previously sanctioned ICC personnel, including judges and former chief prosecutor Karim Khan.

“Either the ICC stops its threats, or we will put an end to the court. We expect our allies, many of whom are members of the ICC and rely on U.S. troops for their defense, to rein in the court,” Rubio said in the statement.

ICC Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan condemned the new U.S. sanctions in an interview with Reuters, insisting they would not stop the court from doing its work. She also urged countries to publicly denounce the measures.

Previous U.S. sanctions against ICC officials included blocking access to financial services offered by American companies. In September, ICC judge Kimberly Prost told Dutch newspaper NRC that the measures had severely disrupted her life. Without warning, she lost access to all her US services, including her credit cards.

Officials around the world have strongly criticized the U.S. sanctions against the ICC. In late September, Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said they stood “firmly behind” the court. During a joint press conference, they pledged to work together against the attacks on the ICC.

The Netherlands and Europe will defend the International Criminal Court “stone by stone,” Prime Minister Rob Jetten said at his weekly press conference on Friday, an hour before the U.S. announced the sanctions. Jetten warned that “far-reaching” new U.S. sanctions against the ICC or its staff would “really affect relations between the U.S. and Europe and all the other countries that are partners of the court.”

Jetten stressed that the ICC is “crucial to the international legal order.” The Netherlands and its European partners have long been urging the United States not to impose further sanctions on the court. The prime minister declined to discuss possible retaliatory measures.

Jetten said the Netherlands had been in contact with the United States at various levels in recent weeks and months, preventing “further escalation.” At the UN summit in New York late last month, the prime minister voiced his support for the court, declaring: “Hands off the ICC.”

King Willem-Alexander met with ICC President Tomoko Akane on Friday. Jetten said the meeting had been planned well in advance, adding that the king “has great affection for the ICC.” The Netherlands has an added responsibility to protect the court as its host country, the prime minister said.

Rubio announced the campaign against the ICC in July, declaring that “the ICC and its supporters are waging a war against our country.” The following month, the United States announced further sanctions targeting, among others, ICC President Tomoko Akane.

Former ICC judge Navanethem Pillay was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize by the Norwegian Nobel Committee on Friday.

The ICC was established in 2002 to prosecute individuals for crimes such as genocide and crimes against humanity.

Back in 2022, Trump supporter Senator Lindsey Graham submitted a resolution praising the ICC, and pushing for the court or another “appropriate international tribunal” to target Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Russian leaders in a war crimes investigation. Rubio was serving in the Senate at the time and co-sponsored the resolution, which passed by Voice Vote on March 15th of that year.

Reporting by ANP and NL Times