GOP Lawmakers Eye Expansion of ICC Sanctions as Court's Top Officials Turn to Europe for Relief

"The Trump administration and its Republican allies in Congress say they will fully enforce sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) and are prepared to expand them in response to recent efforts from top ICC officials to evade the measures.

Earlier this month, Judge Tomoko Akane, the ICC’s president, petitioned the European Union to invoke what is known as the blocking statute, a legal maneuver that shields EU members from sanctions issued by third-party countries such as the United States. Akane told the EU’s parliament ‘it is obvious the court cannot survive alone,’ warning them that ‘the time to act is now’ by invoking the blocking statute, which would allow European companies to provide services to the ICC without fear of penalties.

President Donald Trump slapped sanctions on the ICC in February, making good on his promise to hold the court accountable for efforts to prosecute U.S. military members and close allies like Israel. The court issued an arrest warrant for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu last year, making it difficult for him and other officials to travel throughout Europe.

The U.S. sanctions on the court are now causing similar headaches for the ICC’s top judges, including chief prosecutor Karim Khan, according to Akane...

In Congress, GOP leaders expressed a willingness to further refine and expand the ICC sanctions in response to Akane’s bid to invoke the EU’s blocking statute.

‘The Trump administration and Senate Republicans have made clear that the International Kangaroo Court has no business targeting Americans or our allies, and that anyone who assists in efforts to do so will be punished and sanctioned,’ Sen. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.), a lead backer of recent legislation targeting the ICC, told the Free Beacon. ‘Any attempt to circumvent these clear guidelines will be dealt with swiftly in line with the president’s executive order.’

Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas), another key legislative ally for the Trump administration, said that any European who helps the ICC evade U.S. sanctions could find themselves included in future designations.

‘The U.S. should treat anyone who helps the ICC or its officials evade those sanctions accordingly,’ Cruz, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told the Free Beacon. ‘Sanctions against the Court were long overdue, and it is vital that they be enforced.’..."