WSJ: ‘Trump is preparing to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court’
The sanctions could cripple the Court, preventing it from carrying out transactions in US dollars and effectively cutting it off from much of the global financial system
The Trump administration is preparing to impose large-scale sanctions against the International Criminal Court, in a further escalation of the row with the Hague-based court following the arrest warrants issued in 2024 against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the then Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
According to the Wall Street Journal, which cites US officials and documents seen by the newspaper, the measures would ban most transactions with the Court after a transition period of six to seven months. The measure could prevent it from carrying out transactions in US dollars and severely restrict its access to the international financial system.
So far, Washington has mainly targeted individual judges and officials at the ICC. In August, the United States also imposed sanctions on the Court’s President, Tomoko Akane. The new plan would therefore mark a significant escalation, with measures directed specifically at the institution itself.
The row with the ICC has escalated following the arrest warrants issued on 21 November 2024 against Netanyahu and Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip. Israel disputes the Court’s jurisdiction and rejects the allegations.
