Overview
- Venezuela formally told the United Nations on Friday that it is leaving the International Criminal Court, Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia said in a public post.
- The move follows December 2025 steps by Venezuela's National Assembly to repeal its commitment to the Rome Statute and comes after the ICC opened a probe in 2021 into alleged crimes against humanity linked to crackdowns on protests.
- Plasencia framed the withdrawal as a response to what Venezuela calls a geographic bias that concentrates cases in Africa and Latin America, a complaint repeated by acting President Delcy Rodríguez at public events.
- The announcement came the same day ICC member states voted to dismiss prosecutor Karim Khan and follows U.S. measures and rhetoric in 2025–2026 aimed at curbing the court's work, including sanctions and a declared campaign to limit ICC operations.
- Because the ICC relies on member-state cooperation and has no police force, Venezuela's exit narrows the court's ability to investigate or seek arrests there and may reduce justice options for victims of alleged abuses while raising new diplomatic and enforcement questions.