On 19 March 2025, the President of the International Criminal Court ("ICC"), Judge Tomoko Akane, addressed the Subcommittee on Human Rights (DROI) and the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) of the European Parliament to discuss the latest developments in the international criminal justice architecture in a changing geopolitical landscape, including the US executive order imposing sanctions on the ICC on 6 February 2025. Having explained the current threats faced by the Court and their impact, the President strongly urged the European Union to take immediate action to protect the Court and the rule of law in the international community, including by swiftly amending the EU blocking statute to bring the ICC within its scope. The President emphasised that 'to not use the Blocking Statute means that the European Union abandons the Court and abandons the principles which have been developed after the two world wars. You must not abandon the hope of the victims.'
The European Union, including the European Parliament, has been amongst the strongest supporters of the ICC and its mandate. On 12 March 2025, the European Parliament adopted resolution 2025/2528(RSP) in which it, inter alia, expressed its 'utmost concern about the US sanctions against the ICC, its prosecutors, judges and staff, which constitute a serious attack on the international justice system' and called upon 'the Commission to urgently activate the Blocking Statute and on the Member States to urgently increase their diplomatic efforts in order to protect and safeguard the ICC as an indispensable cornerstone of the international justice system'.
In addition to members of the European Parliament, the President also met with the President and Principal Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation of Belgium as well as civil society representatives.
