US renews pressure on International Criminal Court over jurisdiction claims

The United States has renewed its pressure on the International Criminal Court, saying it will reject any attempt by the court to assert authority over US citizens. The warning was set out in a public letter from acting attorney general Todd Blanche to ICC president Tomoko Akane. It comes as the Trump administration continues a hard line against the court and its work.

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The letter, dated June 29 and released publicly on Thursday, said any effort by the ICC to claim jurisdiction over US citizens would be a "direct affront" to US sovereignty. Blanche wrote that the court has acted in an "increasingly lawless and illegitimate manner". The statement did not announce a new policy, but it repeated the administration's position in unusually direct terms.

The US is not a party to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the court, and says it is therefore not subject to ICC jurisdiction. At the same time, critics have argued that actions taken on the territory of states that are parties to the court could still create legal exposure for US nationals. The issue has long been a point of tension between Washington and the tribunal, with both Democratic and Republican administrations rejecting any move that could bring US citizens under ICC scrutiny.

The latest letter lands against a wider backdrop of sanctions pressure. The Trump administration has already imposed measures against ICC officials and, according to the report, against groups or organisations that assist investigations involving US citizens and allies. In October, those sanctions were used against three Palestinian rights groups accused of helping the court's inquiries into Israeli crimes.

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The administration also issued an executive order in February 2025 saying the sanctions were a response to court actions targeting the United States and its close ally Israel. The dispute is also tied to the court's recent work on the conflict in Gaza. In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes committed during Israel's war in Gaza.

It also issued warrants for several Hamas officials who have since been killed. Israel, like the United States, is not a party to the court, and has rejected its authority. Palestine is a party to the Rome Statute, which has helped keep the court's role in the conflict at the centre of international legal debate.

The public letter follows reports that three ICC judges sued over sanctions, underscoring the growing legal and political strain around the tribunal. What remains unclear is whether Washington will take any further action beyond rhetoric and existing sanctions. The next point to watch is whether the ICC responds publicly to the letter or whether the dispute leads to additional measures against court officials or groups linked to its investigations.

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