The Center Cannot Hold: ICC Sanctions, Rogue Turns, and the Unmaking of Legal Order
"The United States has long justified its use of unilateral sanctions as an extension of its global leadership—tools necessary to uphold international stability where legal institutions fall short. Yet, in sanctioning the International Criminal Court, the Trump administration has turned this logic on its head, turning sanctions not against rogue states or human rights abusers, but against an institution created to hold perpetrators of international crimes accountable. This move represents a profound shift—not merely a rejection of specific prosecutions or even an expression of skepticism against the International Criminal Court itself, but an assault on the very concept of international legal authority."
Recommended Citation: Devika Hovell, The Center Cannot Hold: ICC Sanctions, Rogue Turns, and the Unmaking of Legal Order, 48 Fordham Int'l L.J. 1105 (2025).