UN Chief Voices Alarm Over US Sanctions on ICC
Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary general, voiced his disapproval on Friday of Washington's move to sanction the International Criminal Court, expressing serious concern about what consequences the penalties could bring. Through his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, he told journalists the step dealt a heavy setback to the shared effort to deliver international criminal justice, with the ICC standing as one of its central pillars. Dujarric said Guterres restated his firm backing for the court's independence and that of its personnel.[S1]
Reaction from the UN leader joins a widening chorus of criticism from American partners, after the EU and nations such as Germany, France, the UK and Japan had already spoken out. Spain likewise voiced dismay over the penalties. Tom Berendsen, the Dutch foreign minister, noted that his country is home to the court and that the six months before the measures bite leave room for talks. Belgium's foreign minister Maxime Prevot urged use of the EU Blocking Statute to protect the court, and German Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig described it as utterly staggering that the US, once a driving force behind the Nuremberg trials, now sought to tear down international criminal law.[S1]
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is himself the subject of an ICC arrest warrant, welcomed the move, describing the court as a political institution that represents a mortal danger to democracies that respect the law. Coverage by the BBC also noted the US action, reporting that the court had denounced the sanctions as an attack on the rule of law.[S1][S2]
