“Freemind Family,” The United States of America And Russia, Are Not Among Nations Under The International Criminal Court

I viewed one of the video shows of "Freemind Family," on the International Criminal Court - ICC, issuing an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over war crimes against Ukraine.

The host of that program, "Freemind," invited Timo, who according to him, he is very knowledgeable about international political matters, to discuss the arrest warrant. The host thanked Timo for answering his call to be on his program and explained to him why he had requested him to join his program.

Then Freemind asked Timo to describe the importance of the International Criminal Court, its goals, and the number of nations that are ICC members. Timo claims that the United States of America and Russia are both parties to the International Criminal Court.

I wish to explain to Freemind and Timo that although Russia signed the Rome statute governing the ICC in 2000 but never ratified the agreement to become a member, President Vladimir Putin approved an order to withdraw the country from the process of joining the International Criminal Court.

The decision was taken following a finding by the International Criminal Court that Russia's actions in Crimea constituted an "ongoing occupation." Timo's statement that the United States of America is also a member of the International Criminal Court shocked me more because the United States is not a party to the International Criminal Court.

In reality, some African nations threatened to withdraw from the International Criminal Court because they thought the American government was committing crimes against humanity and going unpunished. This was sparked by the US government's refusal to join the ICC.

After years of criticizing the ICC, three African nations, Burundi, the Gambia, and South Africa, announced their intention to exit the court in 2016.