U.S. Sanctions the Entire International Criminal Court
The State Department imposed sanctions on the court itself Friday, hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay won the Nobel Peace Prize. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the move will ban transactions with what he called a rogue court.
The Trump administration imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court on Friday, targeting the institution itself rather than individual officials.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the move Friday morning. The sanctions prohibit transactions with the court and aim to cut off its resources, he said in a statement reviewed by Reuters ahead of the official announcement.
“President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans,” Rubio said. He added that the United States is now sanctioning the court, banning transactions with it and cutting off its resources to cripple its ability to operate.
The announcement came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her work in international criminal justice. The Nobel committee said it wanted to issue a reminder at a time when judges and institutions of international law are under political attack.
Earlier U.S. sanctions hit individual court officials — nine judges and four prosecutors, including the court’s president, Tomoko Akane. Friday’s move goes further. It could punish companies and banks that provide services to the court itself.
The administration said the Treasury Department will issue licenses to protect American interests. It said the sanctions are structured to give the court and its member states a chance to address U.S. concerns first.
Washington has been hostile to the court for years. The ICC issued arrest warrants in 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister over the war in Gaza. Both have rejected the allegations. The court also once investigated U.S. soldiers over the war in Afghanistan. That investigation has since closed.
The court was founded in 2002 to prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. It counts 125 member states, including every EU country and every NATO member except the United States and Turkey. It is based in The Hague, Netherlands.
Rubio said Washington expects its allies to help rein in the court. The move puts the United States on a diplomatic collision course with European allies, and member states are expected to push back.
