US Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained why the United States is working to dismantle the International Criminal Court, warning that it poses a threat to American sovereignty and arguing that the tribunal has expanded beyond its original purpose and is seeking authority to prosecute US citizens.
In an essay published by the State Department, Rubio wrote that the ICC now “claims the power" to bring US soldiers, law enforcement officials, and elected leaders before an international court and imprison them under laws the United States did not approve.
“The ICC was born at the turn of the century. At first, it was marketed as a narrow backstop to prosecute the gravest crimes," Rubio wrote. “Now the ICC and its allies seek a standing world tribunal with near-unlimited reach, empowered to override the courts and constitutions of the US and other sovereign states."
Rubio argued that Americans never consented to the ICC’s authority, noting that both major political parties had opposed granting an international court jurisdiction over US citizens. He cited former President Bill Clinton’s decision not to submit the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding treaty, to the Senate for ratification.
He also pointed to the bipartisan passage of the American Servicemembers’ Protection Act, which authorized the president to “use all means necessary" to prevent the ICC from detaining or arresting Americans.
The secretary of state criticized the ICC’s 2020 investigation into alleged war crimes by US forces in Afghanistan, saying the court was attempting to override America’s own judicial system.
“In effect, Ms. Bensouda was anointing herself the final judge of US military policy and the entire US justice system," Rubio wrote, referring to former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.
Rubio said that efforts to expand ICC authority have continued during the second Trump administration, including calls from international activists and officials to investigate US policies and military actions.
He warned that American officials involved in enforcing US laws or protecting national security could eventually face legal action from the court.
“Border Patrol agents working to remove violent criminals from our country, US Marines risking their lives to restore order in the Western Hemisphere, federal prosecutors working to dismantle terror networks plotting attacks on the American homeland, all would face the constant risk of persecution," Rubio wrote.
According to Rubio, accepting the ICC’s authority would undermine US independence.
“To accept the ICC is to surrender control of our national destiny," he wrote.
Rubio compared the situation to the grievances that helped spark the American Revolution, writing that the country’s founders opposed being sent overseas to face trials under foreign authority.
“Independence is our birthright," Rubio wrote. “We don’t intend to trade it for rule by a self-appointed priesthood of ‘international law.’"
Rubio said the Trump administration would continue efforts to counter the ICC and protect American personnel from possible prosecution.
“The US is launching a diplomatic campaign with a simple message: sovereign states over globalism," he wrote.
He added that the administration would work with allies and use all available measures to weaken the court’s influence.
“This is only the beginning," Rubio wrote. “Using all the tools at our government’s disposal, working beside every ally with whom we can make common cause, we will dismantle the ICC, brick by brick, if necessary."