US sanctions and their scope

On Friday, 9 October, the United States announced sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The court is being added to the SDN list of Specially Designated Nationals, which mostly names terrorist organisations and serious criminals. US citizens, companies and organisations will be barred from providing services to or doing business with listed persons and institutions, and violators face up to twenty years in prison and a fine of one million dollars. The measures follow earlier sanctions against individual ICC judges and prosecutors, who were already cut off from US services including banking and insurance. According to NOS, the sanctions take effect in April 2027, and the new measures threaten the whole court and all parties linked to it with the same fate.

Rubio framed the move as an either-or: the ICC must either stop its threats or the United States would bring the court to an end. The announcement came shortly after it was revealed that former ICC judge Navi Pillay would receive the Nobel Peace Prize, according to tagesschau. The United States is not an ICC member and does not recognise its jurisdiction, but Americans can still be convicted in The Hague for genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity committed on the territory of one of the court's 125 members. The Americans want the court to stop prosecuting US nationals, according to NOS.

EU ministers choose diplomacy

On Monday, 12 October, EU foreign ministers met in Luxembourg and agreed on a diplomatic path, with no hard measures against the US sanctions for now. Belgium had wanted tougher action, including an instruction to companies to ignore the US sanctions now, but it did not get enough support. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas spent under five percent of her press conference on the court, according to NRC, and described the six months before the sanctions take effect as a "window for dialogue". Her first reaction on Saturday, 10 October, on X used the same phrase. The EU's official reaction that Saturday said it remained firmly committed to the ICC, urged Washington to withdraw the recent measures, and welcomed its willingness to discuss its concerns with states party to the Rome Statute.

Dutch foreign minister Tom Berendsen said after the meeting that the six months should be used for dialogue while protecting the court, and he called the sanctions regrettable and unnecessary.

“The most important thing is to enter into dialogue and to do everything to protect the court.”

The blocking statute question

The EU blocking regulation would forbid European companies from complying with US sanctions. In a late September interview with de Volkskrant, Berendsen said he was willing to use this "horse remedy" as a last resort, while noting it has advantages and disadvantages and should not be used merely to send a signal. Before the meeting he said he would call on the European Commission to prepare the regulation, and Belgium wants the same. Belgian minister Prevot argued that a firm signal is needed because some companies working with the court are already withdrawing their support preventively. Berendsen could not confirm that this is happening, though he said he sees concerns among companies.

Dutch MEP Dirk Gotink (EPP) doubts that the Commission and the European Council are willing to play hard. Axel Voss, a German EPP member of the European Parliament's legal affairs committee, put the sanctions in starker terms.

“If the US punishes judges and prosecutors for fulfilling their mandate, then that is simply intimidation of the judiciary.”

Effects on the court and companies

The transaction ban means banks with US operations may not make transfers to the court's accounts or to its staff, according to tagesschau. Payment flows and internet use often run through American companies, raising fears that the court cannot continue to function. European companies might also adopt the sanctions out of fear of legal consequences in the United States, according to Trouw. ICC President Tomoko Akane called the measures an attack on the international legal order. Bernd Lange, an SPD member of the European Parliament and chair of its trade committee, said it is also an attack on the EU, because the court sits in The Hague and the sanctions therefore target activities within the Union. The Netherlands wants talks with companies and is looking for new partners to support the court, Berendsen said.

What comes next

Negotiations with Washington are expected to unfold over the coming months, but NOS notes that experts stress such a commitment would be hard to obtain. Trouw reports that Trump has often withdrawn or softened threats when he could claim a success, and the US midterm elections in November could affect his room to manoeuvre. The Commission and Berendsen also want to look at new measures to protect the court, but which ones would be taken was not clear on Monday, 12 October. The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu, and neither Russia nor Israel is a member of the court, according to tagesschau.