US Sanctions International Criminal Court President, Senior Lawyer

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stated on Wednesday that the United States' imposition of sanctions on International Criminal Court (ICC) President Tomoko Akane is very unfortunate.

Japan's Foreign Press Secretary Toshihiro Kitamura added that Japan has consistently supported the ICC in prosecuting serious international crimes. Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen criticized the sanctions, stating international courts must be able to freely carry out their mandates. He posted on X that the Netherlands disapproves of the measures and offered to meet Akane to discuss continued support.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions on Tuesday against Akane, a Japanese judge, and Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal, a senior trial lawyer at the ICC. The sanctions freeze any assets held by Akane and Seye in US jurisdictions and largely cut them off from transactions with Americans or the US financial system.

Rubio stated that these individuals directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction. He called the ICC corrupt and fatally politicized and accused it of maliciously abus[ing] its authority and exceed[ing] its mandate. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in February 2025 that created the sanctions framework.

The Trump administration argues the ICC lacks the power to investigate personnel from countries not party to the court, including the US and Israel. The ICC, established in 2002, maintains it can exercise jurisdiction over nationals of non-member states for qualifying crimes committed on the territory of a state that has accepted its jurisdiction. Seye was part of the prosecution team that sought an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant 18 months ago.

The ICC condemned the US sanctions, stating they undermine the rule of law and constitute a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution.