Overview
- Chad's foreign ministry said on Monday, July 27, that the country will withdraw from the International Criminal Court and that a U.S. State Department official urged a review of membership during a July 23 phone call with Chad's foreign minister.
- ICC head Tomoko Akane urged Japan to press other Asian states to stay in the court and said the court has set up workarounds such as using European firms and UN insurance to protect staff payments from U.S. sanctions.
- The Trump administration, led in coverage by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, has publicly pushed allied and non‑allied members to leave the ICC and threatened sanctions and other measures against court officials and related entities.
- The move exposes a growing split in global diplomacy: the European Union has defended the ICC's independence while Japan's government has issued limited statements of concern and domestic outlets have called for stronger Japanese leadership.
- Experts warn that member withdrawals do not erase the court's jurisdiction over crimes committed while a state was a party but that further exits or sanctions could erode the ICC's finances, staff operations, and political authority and prompt more states to reassess membership.