US pressures NATO allies to destroy International Criminal Court

Por Victor Jack — Foreign policy – POLITICO

BRUSSELS — The U.S. attempted to enlist its NATO allies in a campaign to “systematically dismantle” the International Criminal Court, straining already fraught transatlantic relations.

During a closed-door meeting of NATO’s 32 ambassadors in Brussels in mid-July, U.S. envoy Matthew Whitaker asked NATO countries for help in disassembling the international body, and urged them to leave the ICC’s founding document, the Rome Statute, according to three NATO diplomats who were granted anonymity to speak freely.

Whitaker ended his intervention by saying: “We will be watching closely who stands with America.”

The pressure on allies to quit the court — driven by U.S. concern that its own officials could face war crimes prosecutions — is part of a broader Trump administration campaign against international institutions and rules seen as limiting U.S. freedom of action. The White House has moved to pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate agreement, withdrawn from the World Health Organization, ended U.S. participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council and pressured companies to boycott this week’s space summit in Paris, while also launching a series of trade wars.

In parallel to Whitaker’s comments, the U.S. mission sent out a paper to NATO delegations telling them: “The United States will systematically dismantle the capabilities of the ICC … we firmly request that you immediately take steps to withdraw,” according to details of the document shared with POLITICO.

It also pressed allies to “examine the threat” of the ICC to their own countries, “publicly condemn” its “overreach” and “cease … immediately” any material support to the court. “Let us end the charade of the ICC once and for all,” it reads. Although NATO is not a signatory to the court, all alliance members except Turkey and the U.S. belong.

The push against the ICC was launched this summer by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has accused the court of infringing on U.S. sovereignty.

“The ICC and its friends are waging a war against our country not with bullets or missiles but with statutes, compacts and the force of so-called international law,” Rubio said on July 13. “If they believe they can deprive us of our sovereignty, we will teach them the full meaning of American resolve.”

The court was established in 2002 to prosecute people accused of the most serious international crimes, including genocide and war crimes.

The ICC last investigated allegations against U.S. officials in 2020, when it opened a probe into alleged war crimes by American soldiers in Afghanistan — before deprioritizing it the following year. But it has since faced calls to investigate U.S. drug-related attacks on boats in the Caribbean. 

Strained alliance

The campaign comes at a delicate moment for NATO. The alliance has come under intense strain after many European countries refused to join the U.S. war in Iran, sparking fury from President Donald Trump. Earlier this year, Washington also brought the alliance to the brink of implosion over Trump’s threats to annex Greenland, a self-governing territory of NATO member Denmark.

The alliance managed to largely paper over those cracks at its annual leaders’ gathering in Ankara in July — but fresh tensions arose within days with the demand to quit the court.

The comments were “quite shocking,” one of the NATO diplomats said. It was “disappointing,” added the second diplomat.

In response to Whitaker’s remarks, which were raised as an agenda side point to an otherwise regular meeting, France and the Netherlands defended the ICC and signaled their opposition to the move, the diplomats said. 

The U.S. NATO delegation didn’t respond to a request for comment. The French delegation declined to comment but noted, “France’s unwavering support for the ICC.” The Dutch delegation referred to remarks by the country’s Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen, who said the Netherlands “fully” supports the ICC.

American envoys have also raised the issue bilaterally with European countries, two of the diplomats said. The U.S. State Department has vowed “increased scrutiny of nations that refuse to reject the ICC’s false authority while relying on U.S. assistance.” Last month, Washington sanctioned top officials on the court, including ICC President Tomoko Akane.

An ICC spokesperson said in comments: “The Court remains focused on carrying out its mandate impartially, independently and in accordance with the Rome Statute on behalf of victims and in the interests of justice. In the face of attempts to frustrate its work, the ICC remains steadfast and resilient.”

The campaign comes against the backdrop of a U.S. effort — dubbed NATO 3.0 — to make Europe and Canada take more responsibility for their own defense while recalibrating Washington’s historically outsized contribution to the alliance’s capabilities and spending. 

A questionnaire sent to NATO countries last month that asked their views on U.S. foreign policy, including in the Middle East, was seen by some as an attempt to strongarm them into alignment in exchange for U.S. protection. 

It is unlikely that Washington was seeking to similarly compel allies with its ICC demand, given it was raised as a side point to a broader discussion, the two NATO diplomats said. They did acknowledge that raising the point inside NATO is far more sensitive than in other diplomatic settings due to the U.S. being the de facto leader of the alliance.

Fonte: Foreign policy – POLITICO