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The United States will threaten Monday to punish individuals who cooperate with the International Criminal Court in a potential investigation into US wartime actions in Afghanistan, according to people familiar with the ruling.
The Trump administration is also expected to announce that it is closing a Palestinian diplomatic office in Washington because the Palestinians have sought to use the international tribunal to prosecute the US ally Israel, said the people.
The White House National Security Advisor, John Bolton, is expected to expose on Monday the threat of sanctions and the ban on traveling to the United States for those involved in the Americans' attempt to sue in international court.
Bolton is a long-time opponent at the court on the grounds that he violates national sovereignty.
The speech, titled "Protecting American Constitutionalism and the Sovereignty of International Threats," is Bolton's first official speech since joining the administration in April. It is sponsored by the Federalist Society, a conservative and libertarian political group.
Bolton should present a new campaign to challenge the legitimacy of the court, as it considers cases that could endanger the United States and its close allies for the first time, according to people familiar with the anticipated remarks were not allowed to do it on the record.
Bolton is likely to present US opposition to the court and propose measures including new agreements to protect US personnel from international prosecution and the threat of travel penalties or restrictions for those involved in the prosecution of Americans.
One person said that Bolton planned to use the speech to announce that the Trump administration would force the closure of the Palestine Liberation Organization's Washington office in a dispute over a Palestinian effort to prosecute Israel through through the ICC.
Bolton's announcement is closely linked to the concern of the Pentagon and intelligence agencies about the potential liability of the United States to take legal action against the actions in Afghanistan, said a senior administration official.
The ICC's investigation of US wartime stock represents exactly the kind of violation of US sovereignty that Bolton and D & # 39; other opponents of the court have long warned, said the official.
"The policy issue is much more real because of the potential liability in Afghanistan," the official said, adding that other countries had similar concerns.
The Trump administration asked if the ICC had jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute US citizens for actions in Afghanistan, since Afghan, US and US military laws could all apply in different situations, said the manager.
The new strategy against the ICC follows actions taken by the administration to challenge international cooperation in other areas. This year, the administration withdrew from the United Nations human rights body, suspended financial support for a program to help Palestinian refugees in the United States, and threatened to withdraw of the World Trade Organization.
Bolton's speech comes two weeks before President Trump attends the United Nations General Assembly, where he will address other world leaders. US officials said Trump would focus on US claims about the threat posed by Iran and reiterate his opposition to the international nuclear deal with Iran. Trump withdrew the United States from the deal in May.
Trump's opposition to the Iran deal is linked to a wider suspicion of international agreements and organizations such as the ICC.
Three successive US administrations of both political parties have rejected the full jurisdiction of the international court over US citizens, although cooperation between the United States and the Court has grown considerably under the Obama administration.
The United States has never signed the international treaty of 2002, called the Treaty of Rome, which created the tribunal, which is based in The Hague.
Stephen Pomper, who has worked on ICC-related issues in the Obama administration, said that an attempt to weaken the court would exacerbate tensions between the United States and the allies in Europe and the United States. elsewhere who were supporters of the court.
"This will create unnecessary friction and this will create the impression that the United States is a stalker and a hegemon," said Pomper, who is now US program director at the International Crisis Group.
US Bolton was part of the George W. Bush government's efforts to formalize US resistance to the court, including banning US support and trying to pressure other countries to they do not call back their American citizens.
Bolton's opposition intensified as ICC judges assess a request by prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, who last fall sought leave to formally investigate alleged crimes committed during the war in Afghanistan. This could include actions by US military or intelligence personnel in the detention of suspected terrorists.
In his Wall Street Journal article last November, Bolton said the investigation urgently needed to keep the US and its citizens out of court.
"The long-term security of America depends on refusing to recognize the legitimacy of justice," he wrote.
David Bosco, a professor at the Indiana University School of Global and International Studies, said the judges were likely to approve Bensouda's request.
The court is also considering a request by the Palestinian authorities to investigate alleged crimes committed in the Palestinian territories, a move that could lead to attempts to prosecute Israeli officials.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, in a speech at the United Nations a year ago, called on the ICC to investigate and prosecute Israeli citizens for alleged crimes against Palestinians.
In response, the Trump administration had moved in November to close the Palestinian diplomatic office, but quickly backed down and allowed the office to remain open with temporary restrictions.
This office serves as a de facto embassy, endowed with an ambassador, to represent Palestinian interests to the US government.
The Trump administration contends that Palestinians have violated US law by seeking prosecution against Israel at the ICC. The administration's initial decision to close the office broke with Abbas, which expanded in December when Trump announced that the United States would recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and move its embassy there.
The Trump administration has not publicly committed to supporting a separate sovereign Palestine alongside Israel, which was the goal of previous administrations. But like previous US administrations, the Trump White House believes that Palestinian efforts to gain recognition of the state through international organizations are illegitimate.
The Bush and Obama administrations have sought to negotiate between Israel and the Palestinians to achieve this goal. The Trump administration drafted a detailed proposal to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but did not publish it or publicly discuss how it would address the issue of the creation of 39, a Palestinian state.
Bosco said punitive measures "would mark a return to a kind of cold war between Washington and The Hague".
But action against the ICC is likely to generate fewer Congressional protests than other international organizations, as politicians on both sides generally oppose attempts to subject Americans, especially service members, to international prosecution.
The ICC has been the subject of international criticism for other reasons, including the fact that it has moved slowly to condemn and has focused mainly on crimes committed in Africa.
Julie Tate and Carol Morello contributed to this report.
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