ICC President Hits Back at US Sanctions, Calls Them an Attack on Rule of Law

The president of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has forcefully rejected sanctions imposed by the United States, describing the allegations behind them as entirely without merit and warning that the measures represent a broader threat to international law.

Tomoko Akane, a Japanese national who leads the court, spoke publicly for the first time since the US State Department announced sanctions against her and a senior ICC prosecutor on Tuesday. The measures freeze any assets they hold in US jurisdictions or that pass through the American financial system.

"There is simply no truth to the long-standing claims by the United States that the ICC is a corrupt political organization that has abused so-called international law to deprive independent states of their sovereignty, or that I myself have been involved in such activities," Akane said.

The sanctions are part of a wider US campaign against the court, which Washington accuses of overstepping its mandate by investigating officials from nations that are not ICC members, including Israel and the United States. According to the court, the Trump administration has now sanctioned nine of its 18 judges, both deputy prosecutors, a former chief prosecutor, and one other staff member.

Akane acknowledged the personal toll of the measures, noting that she has already been cut off from using credit cards and expects further disruptions to her work and daily life in Japan. However, she said such inconveniences would not deter her.

"What's important is that I anticipated from the outset that I would face various unreasonable inconveniences or threats directed at me personally," she said. "They will not change the way I approach my judicial duties, nor will I allow myself to be crushed by these threats."

Akane also appealed to her home country, Japan, to use its diplomatic influence. She noted that Japan has long made the rule of law a cornerstone of its foreign policy and urged Tokyo to persuade Washington against further escalation. She also called on other ICC member states to resist US pressure to withdraw from the court.

"Sanctions against the ICC are not simply an issue concerning the ICC alone," she said, "but should be viewed as a crisis for the rule of law itself."