The United States has announced a campaign to weaken the International Criminal Court (ICC), describing the tribunal as a threat to American sovereignty and signalling that further sanctions, visa restrictions and diplomatic pressure on allies could follow.
In a statement released on Monday, the U.S. State Department said it would pursue a "whole-of-government response" to "systematically disable the ICC's ability to operate, target American servicemen or officials, or otherwise threaten American sovereignty."
Washington argues that the court has no jurisdiction over U.S. citizens because the United States has never ratified the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC. The department said successive U.S. administrations had rejected the court's authority over Americans, noting that the ICC had previously opened an investigation into alleged crimes committed by U.S. troops and intelligence personnel in Afghanistan.
Although the court shifted its focus away from the U.S. investigation in 2021, it has never formally closed the case.
Writing in The Wall Street Journal, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration would "dismantle the ICC - brick by brick, if necessary", arguing that the court had evolved into a supranational institution seeking to override the authority of sovereign states.
The latest move comes after Washington imposed sanctions last year on 11 ICC officials, including nine judges and the court's chief prosecutor, freezing assets under U.S. jurisdiction and imposing travel restrictions.
The European Union responded by reaffirming its support for the ICC. European Commission spokesperson Anouar El Anouni said the bloc remained committed to the court's independence, international criminal justice and the fight against impunity.
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Maritime trackers received new reports of an attack on a ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), adding to concerns about energy supplies after Saudi Arabia shut down a vital oil pipeline on Saturday.
A Kyiv-Warsaw train was struck near the Polish border, Ukraine's state railway firm said on Sunday. No passengers were injured. Ukrainian Railways said that the country's railways were facing systematic attacks for a second day and warned of widespread delays.
Saudi Arabia has temporarily shut down its 1,200-kilometre East-West oil pipeline after it was hit by a drone attack, with Riyadh and Baghdad saying the strike originated from Iraq.
Swedes vote in an election on Sunday (13 September) that could see the far-right enter government for the first time if the country's right-wing parties can form a majority.
Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces struck two cargo vessels overnight in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Chornomorsk, the Interfax news agency reported on Saturday.
U.S. President Donald Trump has pushed back against growing calls for the artificial intelligence (AI) industry to slow down, arguing that maintaining America’s lead over China is more important.
The aftermath of Russia’s latest strikes on Ukraine over the weekend, including a drone attack on a train near the Ukraine-Poland border, continues to draw international reaction, as Kyiv reports damage to civilian and critical infrastructure.
Sweden’s centre-left opposition has taken a slim lead in a closely fought election that could reshape the country’s approach to migration and the far right.
When Iran moved to shut the Strait of Hormuz this year, sending Middle East energy markets into turmoil, China had already spent the best part of a decade getting ready for exactly this kind of shock.
At the southern tip of the Red Sea, where Yemen faces Djibouti and Eritrea across a channel only around 30 kilometres wide at its narrowest, lies one of the world's most consequential waterways: the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
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