/ / The United States lifts sanctions against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court

The United States lifts sanctions against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court

April 02, 2021

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This Friday, the Joe Biden Administration lifted the sanctions imposed by then-President Donald Trump by two senior officials of the International Criminal Court (ICC), including prosecutor Fatou Bensouda. The sanctions, considered one of the most aggressive measures against international organizations and personalities, were applied when the ICC announced that it was going to investigate whether the United States military committed crimes during the war in Afghanistan.

Joe Biden has put an end to another of the measures applied in the era of Donald Trump. This Friday the Democrat revoked the sanctions that Trump imposed against two high officials of the International Criminal Court (ICC), trying to establish a better relationship with the court after the friction he had with the Republican Administration, as a result of the investigation of alleged crimes of war committed by US troops in Afghanistan.

Through a statement, Antony Blinken, current secretary of the United States, was in charge of making the news public. Despite the lifting of sanctions, Blinken made it clear that the current US Executive is also “in total disagreement” with the ICC’s attempt to “exert influence” over states that are not part of it, such as the United States and Israel. .


The politician assured that he considers Trump’s measures as “inappropriate and ineffective.” He also noted that he believes it would be more effective for all parties to sit down and “discuss” a possible solution, rather than directly imposing sanctions on important personalities within the international justice body.

For its part, the ICC welcomed the news with “satisfaction”, showing itself open to dialogue. Its president, Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi, expressed it this way in an official note.


“As President of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute, I wish to express my deep appreciation for the decision adopted today by the Government of the United States to revoke Executive Order 13928 and to lift the unfortunate sanctions against the prosecutor of the Court. Criminal International and a high-level member of his office staff, as well as ending the separate 2019 policy on visa restrictions for some Court officials, “remarked Fernández in an ICC statement.

The origin of the conflict with the ICC

The conflict erupted after the court, based in The Hague, announced at the end of 2017 that it was going to investigate possible war crimes committed by the United States during the war in Afghanistan (2001-2014). The decision was not well received in Washington. Mike Pompeo, a former US secretary, referred to the ICC last year as an “unauthorized tribunal.”

The disagreement reached higher levels when the ICC said it would open an investigation into alleged war crimes committed on Palestinian land by Israel, a US ally that does not recognize the authority of the court. And also, a nation that the United States has always supported and that has great economic power in the North American country.

As a result of the determination, sanctions were imposed against the agency’s prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, and the head of the Division of Jurisdiction, Complementarity and Cooperation of the Prosecutor’s Office, Phakiso Mochochoko. In addition, the issuance of visas for officials of the Hague-based body was also restricted, something that Biden’s State Department has also ended.

The court was created to prosecute the perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity when they are not duly dealt with by the national judicial systems. It began to function in 2002 and, despite the fact that 123 countries are part of the court, the United States never joined. On repeated occasions, the North American country has assured that it will not join because it considers that judging US troops and officials is an issue related to national sovereignty. However, it has supported international judicial initiatives to punish those who committed war crimes in regions such as the Balkans or Rwanda.

“Our support for the rule of law, access to justice and the ability to hold those responsible for mass atrocities accountable are important national security interests for the United States,” Blinken said of his international position.

The removal of these sanctions is another step by the Biden Administration toward multilateralism. Since entering the White House, the Democrat made clear his intention for the United States to return to the international stage, with the same presence it had before Trump’s term. This one unilaterally left numerous international institutions and agreements considering that they were “against US interests”, championing a markedly isolationist policy.

Since his inauguration, Biden has turned the United States back to the World Health Organization, the UN Human Rights Council, the Paris Agreement, and started talks to return to the nuclear deal with Iran.

With EFE, AP and AFP

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source https://pledgetimes.com/the-united-states-lifts-sanctions-against-the-prosecutor-of-the-international-criminal-court/

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