The Secretary of State of the United States, Marco Rubio, has once again launched harsh criticisms this Thursday against the International Criminal Court (ICC), which he has again described as made up of "crazy people and lunatics," emphasizing that Washington will not accept its authority under any circumstances.
"We have been in conflict with them for a long time. There are crazy people and lunatics in the ICC who talk about accusing members of the U.S. Army, perhaps even the president or a future president, of crimes. That is not going to happen," he emphasized in statements from Manila, where he met with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.
In the same vein, he reiterated that the United States will not allow the court to act against its citizens and stressed that the country does not recognize its jurisdiction. "It's simply not going to happen. We are not members of that court. We never signed that treaty and they have to understand that," he indicated, referring to the Rome Statute, the founding text of the ICC, which was signed at the time by then-President Bill Clinton in the final hours of his term and later revoked by George Bush.
Rubio has insisted that the United States will not join the court "nor will it apply its jurisdiction to Americans." "We are not going to tolerate it now or in the future, and we have warned them repeatedly. Now they will see the consequences," he stated, stressing that any country that wishes to be part of this "stupid" organization "can do so," but making it clear that Washington distances itself from its decisions and resolutions.
With these statements, the U.S. official reinforces Washington's campaign of pressure against the court based in The Hague, which it accuses of "threatening" national sovereignty and against which it is considering various response measures, including the imposition of sanctions.