Three Estonian MEPs back plan to strengthen ICC, while Madison opposes

Three Estonian members of the European Parliament supported a report calling for the protection and strengthening of the International Criminal Court, while Jaak Madison voted against it, ERR reported. The court has recently faced strong pressure from the US government.

The report was approved on Monday by the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs and will go to the full Parliament for a vote. It calls for an EU strategy to strengthen the international legal system, protect judicial independence and uphold the rule of law.

Supporters were committee vice-chair Urmas Paet, of Renew Europe, and members Riho Terras, of the European People’s Party, and Sven Mikser, of the Socialists and Democrats. Madison, a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists group, opposed the report.

The report condemns unilateral measures by foreign governments targeting international courts, people working under UN mandates and human rights organisations cooperating with them. It also condemns pressure on countries to withdraw from the Rome Statute, the treaty underpinning the ICC.

MEPs called on the EU to increase its legal, operational, financial and political support for the court and include that support in its foreign policy and agreements with non-EU countries. The report also asks the European Commission to propose an action plan to ensure that affected people and organisations retain access to essential services, including salaries, banking, insurance, healthcare and digital accounts.

The report says EU member states that are parties to the Rome Statute must cooperate fully with the ICC, including by enforcing its decisions and arrest warrants. It also calls for a plan to establish a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine under the auspices of the Council of Europe, and for a proposal allowing the EU to become a founding member.

Speaking to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Paet said weakening the ICC could create a sense of impunity and increase the risk of crimes recurring. He said justice should not depend on how powerful an offender is or which country they represent.

Paet pointed to ICC arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin over the deportation of Ukrainian children and for Russian military commanders over attacks on Ukraine’s electricity infrastructure that put civilians at risk. He said the warrants were concrete steps towards accountability, even if justice takes time.