Brussels – “The time for words, for ‘we deplore’ and ‘we condemn but at this stage we prefer dialogue’ is over,” says MEP Cecilia Strada (PD / S&D) following the announcement of new US sanctions against the International Criminal Court. “If the European Commission truly recognises the gravity of the reckless attack currently being waged against the ICC, it must immediately activate the blocking regulation – and all other means at its disposal – to protect the Court and those who cooperate with it, as we, together with other MEPs, have been calling for for almost two years. Until now, sanctions have targeted individual judges and prosecutors, making their lives impossible, but now this designation – unless we stop it – will lead to the closure of the Court,” she adds.
“It is hard not to see this move by the US as retaliation for the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to those who have denounced the genocide in Gaza,” the MEP continues. “Protecting the ICC is a duty, and the Commission should have acted some time ago. It must act now, without wasting any more time,” she concludes. Strada’s appeal is joined by her colleagues Annalisa Corrado and Alessandro Zan, MEPs from the PD. “The independence of international justice is at stake. If we allow the United States to bring the International Criminal Court to its knees with sanctions, we will render international law meaningless. Europe cannot accept this: it must take concrete action and defend the ICC,” they emphasise.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
