No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ) condemns in the strongest possible terms the unlawful sanctions imposed by the United States government against sitting judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC). These sanctions, which include asset freezes, visa bans, and coercive measures targeting family members, are not only punitive, they are retaliatory. They target independent judicial officials solely for carrying out their legal duties under the Rome Statute.
This represents a flagrant breach of international law and a direct assault on the principle of judicial independence. They are designed to intimidate and punish those who uphold international accountability, and they threaten the very foundation of the global justice system.
These sanctions fall squarely within the scope of Article 70(1)(c) of the Rome Statute, which criminalises: “Retaliating against an official of the Court on account of duties performed by that or another official.”
Under the Rome Statute and the ICC’s Rules of Procedure and Evidence, the Prosecutor holds the authority to initiate proceedings for offences against the administration of justice, without the need for referral, judicial authorisation, or a preliminary examination. That authority is not passive or optional. When the legal threshold is plainly met, it becomes a duty. The Statute provides the means not only to act, but to protect the Court from interference. The legal standard is not just satisfied, it is unmistakably exceeded.
The Office of the Prosecutor must act. To remain silent in the face of this assault is to accept the erosion of judicial independence and the normalization of intimidation.
At the same time, the European Union must activate and enforce Council Regulation (EC) No 2271/96 (the so-called Blocking Statute). The EU cannot allow its institutions or its citizens to be subjected to coercive foreign policies that violate international law and undermine European sovereignty.
These sanctions are not merely a bilateral matter between the United States and the Court. They are an affront to Europe’s sovereignty and legal order; they appear as a calculated attempt to weaken an institution that the EU and its Member States have consistently defended, financed, and championed.
The Blocking Statute provides the EU with the legal tools it needs and must now use. It prohibits compliance with unlawful extraterritorial measures, allows recovery of damages, and nullifies the effect of foreign rulings within the Union. Its activation is not only legally justified, it is legally, politically and morally necessary.
NPWJ calls on all States Parties to the Rome Statute to speak with clarity and resolve. This is not a time for equivocation. Silence emboldens aggressors. Civil society, legal professionals, and international institutions must stand together in defence of the principles that underpin our shared system of international justice.
[Conclusion]
This is a moment of reckoning for all who believe in the rule of law. International justice cannot yield to intimidation. There can be no deterrence of atrocity crimes if those who deliver accountability face retaliation. The United States has chosen coercion over cooperation, intimidation over legal norms. The ICC must defend its own. Europe must defend its sovereignty. And the rest of the world must demand justice – nothing less.
