The European Commission on Tuesday rejected the US administration’s campaign against the International Criminal Court (ICC), describing threats against the court’s judges, their families, and those cooperating with the institution as “completely unacceptable”.
The European response came a day after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sharply criticized the ICC amid continuing tensions between Washington and the Hague-based court over its investigations related to Israel and the issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli officials.
European Commission spokesperson Anouar El Anouni said the European Union remains firmly committed to international criminal justice.
“We are firmly committed to international criminal justice,” El Anouni said during a press briefing.
He added that “attacks or threats against judges of the Court, their families, or those cooperating with it are completely unacceptable.”
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On Monday, Rubio published a video and an opinion article on the social media platform X, arguing that the ICC and its supporters were waging what he described as a legal campaign against the United States through international law and treaties.
Rubio said the court and its allies were “waging war” on the United States through legal mechanisms rather than military means and warned that Americans could be exposed to prosecution by foreign judges.
Relations between the Trump administration and the ICC have become increasingly strained in recent months, with the United States imposing sanctions on several ICC officials and judges, including the Prosecutor, in response to the court’s investigations related to Israel.
The dispute intensified after the ICC issued arrest warrants in 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the genocide in Gaza.
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