At the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, President Donald Trump used the podium to call on every nation belonging to the International Criminal Court to resign, describing the court as "out of control" and a "rogue institution".
The ICC, established by the Rome Statute in 2002, prosecutes crimes such as genocide and crimes against humanity, but Washington has never ratified the treaty and has repeatedly imposed sanctions on its officials after the court issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed Trump, vowing to dismantle the court "brick by brick" and calling it an intolerable threat to U.S. sovereignty, while China, Russia and Israel – all non‑members – declined to comment.
The arrest warrant, issued in 2024, was a response to alleged misconduct by Netanyahu during the Gaza conflict, a move that the U.S. has denounced as politically motivated and has tightened sanctions, including limiting ICC staff travel to Washington.
Washington now insists it will not allow any U.S. service member or citizen to be investigated by the ICC, and the administration is preparing a formal request to the UN Security Council for a resolution that would limit the court's jurisdiction over U.S. nationals.
The next step will see the U.S. lobbying allies for the resolution, with the first round of negotiations slated for next month, and could trigger a broader debate over the ICC's legitimacy and the role of the United Nations in international justice.