Under Donald Trump’s direction, the international policies of the U.S. will keep getting worse. Yes, that is possible. The president does not feel that criminal laws apply to him, and by extension, his country. Here is what he plans.
The administration will sanction International Criminal Court (ICC) judges, should they decide to investigate potential war crimes committed by Americans in Afghanistan.
National Security Adviser John Bolton announced the president’s intentions in a speech to the conservative Federalist Society.
Reuters obtained a draft of Bolton’s speech, where he said “ICC does not exercise jurisdiction over Americans:”
‘The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court. The United States will always stand with our friend and ally, Israel. We will not cooperate with the ICC. We will provide no assistance to the ICC. We will not join the ICC. We will let the ICC die on its own. After all, for all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us.
‘We will consider taking steps in the U.N. Security Council to constrain the court’s sweeping powers, including to ensure that the ICC does not exercise jurisdiction over Americans and the nationals of our allies that have not ratified the Rome Statute.’
According to Reuters, Palestinian official Saeb Erekat released a statement that read:
‘We reiterate that the rights of the Palestinian people are not for sale, that we will not succumb to U.S. threats and bullying. Accordingly, we continue to call upon the International Criminal Court to open its immediate investigation into Israeli crimes.’
The head of a network of six medical centers said:
‘This decision will create serious cash-flow problems at the hospitals and will necessarily create delays in life-saving and other urgent treatments. Overall, the decision puts the health of 5 million Palestinians at risk.’
The head of a network of six medical centers commented:
‘This decision will create serious cash-flow problems at the hospitals and will necessarily create delays in life-saving and other urgent treatments. Overall, the decision puts the health of 5 million Palestinians at risk.’
Trump has just revoked $25 million to Palestine.
Featured image is a screenshot via YouTube.