The United States has launched a formal campaign to dismantle the International Criminal Court, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling on member states to withdraw and announcing a suite of coercive measures. In a statement and a Wall Street Journal article this week, Rubio declared that the ICC and its allies are “waging a war” against the US through international law, and vowed to use all instruments of government to “dismantle” the institution. The State Department confirmed it will impose sanctions on the court and affiliated organisations, revoke visas for officials, and exert diplomatic pressure on the 125 states parties to the Rome Statute. According to US officials, the court threatens American sovereignty, particularly by asserting jurisdiction over alleged war crimes committed by US troops, such as a preliminary investigation into torture in Afghanistan that the Trump administration challenged in 2018.

ICC President Tomoko Akane, in a statement marking International Criminal Justice Day on 17 July, stressed that international courts “must always remain independent and free from political influence and coercion.” She acknowledged that international law is under increasing pressure, but said the court would remain steadfast in its mission. Her remarks did not directly name the US, yet they came as the institution confronts a parallel internal crisis: on 24 July, the 125 states parties will vote at UN headquarters in New York on the unprecedented removal of Prosecutor Karim Khan. Khan has been under investigation for nearly two years over allegations of sexual harassment of a colleague, a process in which Switzerland, as a member of the ICC’s executive Bureau, plays a significant role. The vote, whatever its outcome, is seen by European analysts as capable of weakening the court’s legitimacy at a moment of acute external threat.

The US campaign has drawn sharp condemnation from civil-society groups in Muslim-majority nations. Viewed from Jakarta, the Aqsa Working Group described the effort as a political intervention to shield Israeli leaders from accountability, after ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity in Gaza. The group rejected all sanctions, visa restrictions, and diplomatic intimidation against court personnel and supportive states. In Europe, commentators note that the European Union has not mounted a robust defence of the court, while some member states, including Italy, have failed to execute ICC orders, further eroding its authority. Israeli officials have repeatedly claimed the arrest warrants are a diversion from the prosecutor’s own troubles.

The ICC, created in 2002, has no police force and relies on member states to carry out arrests. The US, which never ratified the Rome Statute, has secured bilateral agreements with more than 100 countries not to surrender American nationals to the court. A former ICC prosecutor, speaking to Brazilian media, suggested the sudden US offensive is preemptive, linked to recent military actions—including strikes in the Caribbean, an attack in Venezuela, and the war in Iran—that have drawn criticism under international law. A Princeton international-relations scholar argued that Washington lacks the legal authority to dismantle the court, but can exert considerable pressure. The vote on the prosecutor’s removal is expected on 24 July, while the US campaign to isolate the ICC continues through diplomatic channels and the UN Security Council.