Trump authorises economic sanctions, travel restrictions against ICC officials

President Donald Trump on Thursday authorized economic sanctions and travel restrictions against International Criminal Court officials directly engaged with any effort to investigate or prosecute American personnel without the consent of the United States.

President Donald Trump on Thursday authorized economic sanctions and travel restrictions against International Criminal Court officials directly engaged with any effort to investigate or prosecute American personnel without the consent of the United States. Trump also authorized the expansion of visa restrictions against the family members of the ICC officials, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said in a statement. Noting that the US is not a State Party to the Rome Statute and has repeatedly rejected the ICC's assertions of jurisdiction over American personnel, she said the court's actions are an attack on the rights of the American people and threatens to infringe upon its national sovereignty. "The International Criminal Court was established to provide accountability for war crimes, but in practice it has been an unaccountable and ineffective international bureaucracy that targets and threatens United States personnel as well as personnel of our allies and partners," she said. Despite repeated calls by the US and its allies to reform, the ICC has taken no action to reform itself and continues to pursue politically-motivated investigations against the US and its allies, including Israel, McEnany said. "We are concerned that adversary nations are manipulating the International Criminal Court by encouraging these allegations against United States personnel. Further, we have strong reason to believe there is corruption and misconduct at the highest levels of the International Criminal Court Office of the Prosecutor, calling into question the integrity of its investigation into American service members," McEnany said.

"As the President's Executive Order makes clear, the United States will continue to use any means necessary to protect our citizens and our allies from unjust prosecution by the International Criminal Court," she added. Since assuming office, Trump has withdrawn from several international treaties like the Paris climate deal, the Iranian nuclear deal and arms control treaties with Russia. He has also pulled the US out of the UN Human Rights Council and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).