Washington designated Tomoko Akane as a part of a marketing campaign it described as a risk to American sovereignty
International Criminal Court President Tomoko Akane has warned of what she described because the erosion of worldwide regulation after US authorities imposed sanctions on her and one other senior ICC official.
The Hague-based establishment was created in 2002 underneath the Rome Statute to prosecute genocide, conflict crimes, and crimes in opposition to humanity. So far, 123 nations have ratified the treaty and are full members of the court docket. However, main world powers together with Russia, China, India and the US have both not signed or not ratified the settlement.
“I had anticipated these sanctions against me to some extent, so I am not surprised,” she stated in a remark included in a social media put up on Friday by Japanese writer Bungei Shunju, which had revealed her guide. “What is important is not to let this become the beginning of the end of the international rule of law.”
On Tuesday, Washington sanctioned Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the establishment as a “corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court that has maliciously abused its authority and exceeded its mandate.”
The designations are a part of a marketing campaign introduced by Rubio final month to “systematically dismantle the threat posed” by the ICC to US sovereignty.
The ICC stated on Wednesday that it “strongly rejects” the brand new designations, calling them “a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution.”
The White House has accused the court docket of concentrating on residents of states which have neither consented to its jurisdiction nor ratified the Rome Statute. The ICC beforehand investigated alleged crimes by US navy and intelligence personnel in Afghanistan regardless of Washington not being a member.
Israel has additionally rejected the court docket’s jurisdiction. Nevertheless, in 2024 the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged conflict crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity in Gaza. US President Donald Trump later condemned the warrants in an govt order signed in February 2025.
The court docket has additionally confronted criticism elsewhere, with Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Chad transferring to withdraw from the ICC this summer time, accusing it of disproportionately concentrating on African nations.
READ MORE: US targets ICC chief in push to dismantle court docket
The Philippines withdrew from the ICC in 2019, however the court docket retained jurisdiction over alleged crimes dedicated whereas it was a member. Former President Rodrigo Duterte was arrested underneath an ICC warrant and transferred to The Hague in March 2025 over alleged crimes in opposition to humanity linked to his anti-drug marketing campaign.
Russia has likewise rejected the court docket’s authority. The ICC issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova in March 2023 over the alleged illegal deportation of Ukrainian youngsters. Moscow known as the warrants legally void, rejected the allegations and stated it had evacuated unaccompanied minors from the conflict zone whereas taking steps to return them to their authorized guardians upon request.
(RT.com)