Newspaper (ASIa Pacific) News. The Wall Street Journal of the United States published an exclusive report on Sunday (September 20). According to officials, the Trump administration is preparing to impose sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC). Previously, the court issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Washington is attempting to undermine the institution, marking a sharp escalation of its actions.
(Screenshot source: The Wall Street Journal)
According to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and information disclosed by US officials, the sanctions will ban most transactions with the International Criminal Court after a 6 to 7-month grace period. This could severely impair the court’s operations, as the sanctions may bar it from conducting US dollar transactions, cutting it off from most channels of the global financial system.
No final decision has been made yet, but some US officials told The Wall Street Journal that the sanctions could be finalized as early as this week, coinciding with or shortly after the UN General Assembly where leaders of various countries gather in New York.
A spokesperson for the US State Department declined to preview possible sanctions but stated that Secretary of State Marco Rubio holds the position that the International Criminal Court poses a threat to US sovereignty.
The US Treasury Department declined to comment, while the International Criminal Court did not respond to inquiries from The Wall Street Journal.
This move represents a major escalation of the Trump administration’s actions targeting the court.
The United States has previously sanctioned several ICC officials, including former Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan, ICC President Tomoko Akane, multiple judges, two deputy prosecutors, and the lead prosecutor investigating the case against Israeli officials.
As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the broader sanctions under consideration will target transactions of the entire institution instead of only individual officials. Transactions involving communication services will be exempted.
Rubio stated in July that the administration was preparing broader actions against the International Criminal Court. He argued that the court’s attempt to prosecute officials of non-member states threatens US sovereignty. Neither the United States nor Israel is a member state of the International Criminal Court.
Tensions between Washington and the court further escalated in 2024 after the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The related allegations concern suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza war.
The ICC accused Israeli officials of improperly restricting humanitarian aid to Gaza. Israel denies the relevant allegations.
Karim Khan also sought arrest warrants against Hamas leaders in connection with the group’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Those Hamas leaders have since been killed.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the ICC has separately investigated Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir over their roles in expanding Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
The United States has long questioned the ICC’s authority to exercise jurisdiction over US citizens because America has never ratified the Rome Statute that established the court.
Previous US administrations also opposed attempts by the International Criminal Court to exercise jurisdiction over personnel from non-member countries.