EU backs ICC after US sanctions its president and senior official over Gaza probe

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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa threw their weight behind the International Criminal Court Wednesday, after Washington sanctioned its president and another senior court official.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio sanctioned the ICC’s president, Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye on Tuesday, accusing the court of targeting officials from countries that reject its jurisdiction, given its pursuit of Israeli officials for alleged crimes in Gaza. While Israel and the U.S. don’t belong to the ICC, the court says it has jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed in Palestinian territories.

In a joint statement posted on X, von der Leyen and Costa said they “stand firmly with the [ICC], President Tomoko Akane and the officials who uphold its mission.” The court helps deliver justice to victims of some of the world’s worst crimes, they noted, and its judges and officials must be able to work “independently and without external pressure.”

Commission Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera struck a similar tone, calling the sanctions “profoundly sad and unfair.” The EU stands with the court, its president and officials, she said.

The statements add to mounting pushback from other U.S. allies.

Germany similarly said it stood by Akane and the court on Wednesday, with Martin Giese — a deputy spokesperson for Germany’s foreign ministry — stating the ICC was “fulfilling its mandate exactly as intended” by holding perpetrators of the gravest crimes to account.

Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen posted on X Tuesday evening, saying the Netherlands “disapproves” of the sanctions and warning that international courts “must be able to freely carry out their mandates.” Berendsen has invited Akane to The Hague for talks on continued Dutch support.

Washington has been ramping up pressure on the court recently, with Rubio vowing to “systematically dismantle” the tribunal’s ability to act against Americans and other non-member countries.

The ICC itself decried the sanctions in a statement released Wednesday, calling the measures a “flagrant attack” on its independence. Targeting judges and prosecutors for carrying out their mandate “undermine[s] the rule of law,” the court warned.

“When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk.”