Delivered by the Permanent Represenative of Mexico, Ambassador Juan Ramón de la Fuente
I would like to make the following statement today on behalf of the ten Members of the Security Council that are States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) (Estonia, France, Ireland, Niger, Norway, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia, the United Kingdom, and my own country, Mexico).
We thank the ICC Prosecutor, Ms. Fatou Bensouda, for the presentation of the 21st report to the United Nations Security Council on the situation In Libya, in accordance with resolution 1970. We echo her call for the Council, States and the international community more broadly, to intensify efforts to secure the arrest and surrender to the Court of all ICC suspects-at-large.
Moreover, we as States Parties to the Rome Statute would like to use the opportunity of today’s briefing of the ICC Prosecutor to reconfirm our unwavering support for the Court as an independent and impartial judicial institution.
The ICC, as the world’s first and only permanent international criminal court, is an integral part of the multilateral architecture upholding the rule-of-law. It is a central institution in the fight against impunity and the pursuit of justice, which are essential components of sustainable peace, security and reconciliation.
In this regard, we express our appreciation for the decision adopted last month by the Government of the United States to revoke Executive Order 13928 and to lift the sanctions against the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and a senior staff member in her office, as well as the termination of the separate 2019 policy on visa restrictions on certain ICC personnel.
We will continue to respect our cooperation obligations under the Rome Statute and encourage all States to fully support the Court in carrying out its important mandate of ensuring justice for the victims of the most serious crimes under international law. We recall that the ICC is a court of last resort, which anchors a system of justice for serious international crimes rooted in national courts. National authorities have the primary responsibility to investigate and prosecute Rome Statute crimes. The ICC only steps in when States are unwilling or unable to genuinely carry out national proceedings.
The ICC embodies our collective commitment to fight impunity for the most serious crimes under international law. By giving our full support to the Court and promoting its universal membership, we defend the progress we have made together towards an international rules-based order, of which international justice is an indispensable pillar.
Thank you.