Friday

29th Mar 2024

France puts US under pressure to accept war crimes court

France has tabled a draft resolution at the UN that would refer crimes against humanity in Sudan’s western Darfur region to the International Criminal Court in The Hague (ICC).

The resolution places the US in the difficult dilemma of accepting the International Criminal Court or casting a politically damaging veto in the UN Security Council.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

According to the New York Times, the French will call for a vote today (24 March) in the UN Security Council, where France has been assured of at least 11 votes in favour. Only nine votes are needed to pass the resolution, provided no veto is cast.

Tanzania or The Hague

The ICC has long been a bone of contention between the EU, which champions the court, and the US, which has refused to sign up to it.

The ICC is the first permanent global criminal court to try individuals for genocide, war crimes and massive human rights abuses. But Washington has refused to sign up out of fears that its citizens could be subject to politically motivated prosecutions at the Court.

The United States earlier this week circulated three separate resolutions at the UN to pave the way for a 10,000-strong UN peacekeeping force to be sent to Sudan.

The US resolutions would separate the decision on the peacekeeping force from the decision on how to punish those responsible for atrocities.

The US had earlier proposed establishing a new court in Arusha, Tanzania for the prosecution of Darfur's war crimes. A five-member independent UN commission however earlier this year recommended the Darfur cases be referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

EU Parliament set to sue EU Commission over Hungary funds

The European Parliament will likely take the European Commission to court for unblocking more than €10bn in funds for Hungary last December. A final nod of approval is still needed by European Parliament president, Roberta Metsola.

EU Commission clears Poland's access to up to €137bn EU funds

The European Commission has legally paved the way for Poland to access up to €137bn EU funds, following Donald Tusk's government's efforts to strengthen the independence of their judiciary and restore the rule of law in the country.

Opinion

Potential legal avenues to prosecute Navalny's killers

The UN could launch an independent international investigation into Navalny's killing, akin to investigation I conducted on Jamal Khashoggi's assassination, or on Navalny's Novichok poisoning, in my role as special rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, writes the secretary-general of Amnesty International.

Opinion

I'll be honest — Moldova's judicial system isn't fit for EU

To state a plain truth: at present, Moldova does not have a justice system worthy of a EU member state; it is riven with corruption and lax and inconsistent standards, despite previous attempts at reform, writes Moldova's former justice minister.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us