1 hour ago
The Trump administration is lobbying governments to distance themselves from the ICC, warning that continued support for the global court could affect US assistance. Marco Rubio also outlined possible measures, including sanctions, visa restrictions and travel bans, as Washington seeks to diplomatically isolate the Hague-based tribunal.
Marco Rubio vows to dismantle ICC, urges allies to isolate global court. (Photo: Reuters)
New Delhi,UPDATED: Jul 14, 2026 08:32 IST
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that the United States would seek to "dismantle" the Criminal Court (ICC), marking a sharp escalation in the Trump administration's campaign against the global judicial body. He also urged other countries to join the effort as Washington steps up pressure on governments over their ties to the court.
Rubio accused the ICC of "waging a war" against the United States "not with bullets or missiles," but through "the force of so-called international law."
The renewed push builds on the administration's long-standing hostility towards the ICC, dating back to Trump's first term, when the court sought to investigate alleged war crimes committed by US forces in Afghanistan. During Trump's second term, the administration has already imposed a series of sanctions on ICC officials over the court's efforts to probe the US and Israel.
The latest move, described as a State Department-led "whole-of-government campaign," goes further by seeking to rally other countries to reject the court and signalling that US assistance could be affected, CNN reported. "Nations that refuse to reject the ICC's false authority while relying on US assistance are likely to come under increased scrutiny," a US State Department official told CNN on Monday.
In an opinion piece published by The Wall Street Journal, Rubio wrote: "Using all the tools at our government's disposal, working beside every ally with whom we can make common cause, we will dismantle the ICC -- brick by brick, if necessary." A State Department official told CNN that those tools could include travel bans, visa revocations and tougher sanctions.
According to the official, senior US figures, including Rubio, his deputy and American ambassadors, are contacting governments worldwide “as part of a campaign to diplomatically isolate the Criminal Court and ensure it cannot target Americans.”
These outreach efforts are aimed at persuading ICC member states to leave the court and “cut off any financial support to the court.” Countries that are not party to the ICC, including the US, are also being asked “to leverage their diplomatic networks to take similar action alongside us,” CNN further reported, citing the official.
In the Wall Street Journal piece, Rubio also alleged that the ICC is “backed and run by a powerful network of leftist nongovernment organisations, smug globalists, and hostile Third World governments united by their enmity toward the US.”
He dismissed allegations by outside groups that the administration’s deportations to El Salvador and its deadly boat strikes on alleged narco-terrorists had broken international law. He also rejected a call by Democracy for the Arab World Now, or DAWN, for the ICC to examine alleged war crimes by the US in Iran, while saying such actions could still risk scrutiny from the court.
- Ends
Published By:
Sayan Ganguly
Published On:
Jul 14, 2026 08:32 IST
