Rubio Warns ICC: Change Course on Prosecuting Non-Member Nationals or U.S. Could Inflict 'Tremendous Damage'
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned in Paris on November 9, during the G7 foreign ministers' meeting, that the United States could inflict "tremendous damage" on the International Criminal Court unless it changes its approach to prosecuting nationals of countries that have not joined the court. He told reporters that Washington had spent a year and a half trying to get the court to reform "a nice way," that it had not been willing to do so, and that the United States would have to try a different approach.
Rubio said the dispute was about jurisdiction rather than any individual: "Today it's Netanyahu, tomorrow it will be an American." He said the United States would not accept an American service member or commander standing trial before what he called an illegitimate court the country does not belong to, and he urged allies who want to avoid U.S. action to persuade the court to change course, saying they still had a chance. He declined to specify what measures Washington might take, saying only that the court would not be in good shape if it came to that.
The warning follows sweeping U.S. sanctions imposed on the court and its officials in October over investigations involving Americans and Israelis. The ICC issued arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Neither the United States nor Israel is a member of the court, which maintains it can prosecute crimes committed on the territory of a member state, including by nationals of non-member countries, a position Washington rejects.
Rubio did not specifically address the court's investigations into Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March 2023 over the alleged unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children.
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国国务卿卢比奥官方肖像（资料图）。图：美国国务院，公共领域，经维基共享资源 / Official portrait of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio (file photo). U.S. Department of State, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
