'History will judge this moment': ICC urges member states to defend the institution

Tomoko Akane, the president of the International Criminal Court (ICC), has urged member nations to actively defend the institution after the United States imposed sanctions on it. “This is not just about defending a single institution, but about safeguarding the international order grounded upon the rule of law,” Akane said in a video statement on Friday. The US imposed sanctions on the court, hours after one of its former judges, Navi Pillay, won the Nobel Peace Prize. The statement said: “This unprecedented step follows a series of designations against thirteen independent Judges and prosecutors who serve the cause of justice. “This measure targets an independent judicial institution, created by treaty and entrusted by 125 States Parties with investigating and prosecuting genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression." The court termed the decision as an attempt "to obstruct the course of justice and to prevent the Court from doing what it was created to do". "It is an assault on the rule of law and on the very foundations of the international legal order which strikes at the simple principle that no one stands above the law.” It added that the designation is aimed at disrupting the court’s operations and "at intimidating those who work for or cooperate with the court". "The court, for its part, will not be deterred. The court will continue to fully discharge its mandate, with independence and impartiality, acting only on the basis of the law and the evidence, for the sake of the countless victims of grave crimes.” The court said it could not act alone and its fate "now rests also in the hands of the states that created it". "The Rome Statute is a collective promise that the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole must not go unpunished. That promise is only as strong as the resolve of those who made it. There may be challenges. But, together with its States Parties, the court has made considerable efforts to ensure the continuity and resilience of its activities. “No one should be punished for serving the cause of justice. History will judge this moment. Future generations, and above all the victims of mass atrocities, will ask how we responded when an institution created to protect them came under attack. They will ask whether the court held firm and whether the international community defended the principles it proclaimed or allowed them to be abandoned under pressure.” The ICC strongly rejects US sanctions against the institution: 🎥 Video Statement by the President of the #ICC, Tomoko Akane Learn more ➡️ https://t.co/DJ9dqlzo82 https://t.co/OxQK8EoCeT — Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) October 9, 2026