The European Union reaffirmed its support for the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday amid growing tensions with the United States, with the bloc's foreign policy chief stressing that the court's mandate is to prosecute war crimes rather than target individual countries.
"The ICC is not against countries. It is actually against war crimes," Kaja Kallas told reporters in Paris, where she is attending the two-day G7 Foreign Ministers' meeting.
Her remarks came after the foreign policy chief was asked about comments by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who stated he wants a written guarantee that countries that are not members of the court-particularly the U.S.-cannot be investigated by it.
"If countries are not prosecuting war crimes themselves, then it should be the ICC, and it was important to make this point in the G7 format," she said.
Kallas underlined that the EU is trying to show its American partners that their concerns about the ICC targeting countries are not aligned with the Rome Statute or the core mandate of the court.
"At a time when we see more war crimes being committed across the world, we need more accountability, not less. And that is why we are supporting the International Criminal Court," she said.
When asked if the bloc is prepared to impose its blocking mechanism in response to U.S. sanctions, Kallas said it is "one of the options."
"At the moment, we are working on alternatives because that option is really a last resort. We have a little under six months to work on alternatives so that the ICC can continue to function," she said.
Kallas added: "For us, it is critically important that the ICC continues its work and can prosecute all of these crimes."
Washington imposed sanctions on the ICC last month after former ICC judge Navi Pillay was named the recipient of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
The latest sanctions followed intensified US pressure on the court after it issued arrest warrants in 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes in Gaza.
-No High Expectations for Upcoming Abu Dhabi Talks
Kallas said the foreign ministers had "good discussions" on the international crisis and on "what more we can do together" to prevent crises from emerging and to promote de-escalation across various conflicts.
She noted that ministers also held discussions with partner nations regarding Artificial Intelligence, alongside an important exchange with the World Food Programme.
The foreign policy chief added that ministers will discuss the Middle East and the war in Ukraine on Tuesday, the second day of the meeting.
"So, I am looking forward to those discussions because, clearly, we need to do more together so that these wars can end," she said.
However, Kallas stressed that she does not have "very high expectations" regarding the upcoming Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi.
"We have not seen any genuine signs from Russia that they are willing to negotiate in good faith," she explained.
Russian, Ukrainian, and U.S. representatives are scheduled to convene in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday for a renewed round of trilateral peace negotiations.
