POZIŢIA SUA FAŢĂ DE JURISDICŢIA CURŢII PENALE INTERNAŢIONALE ASUPRA RESORTISANŢILOR SĂI

Abstract

The USA fully participated in the negotiations of the ICC’s Rome Statute and supplemental documents, and President Bill Clinton signed the Statute on December 31, 2000. Under President George W. Bush, however, the USA has engaged in a widespread campaign against the International Criminal Court. The Bush administration has pursued bilateral immunity agreements (so called Article 98 agreements) with other countries to prevent the surrender of all US citizens, current and former employees of the US government and military (including non-nationals) to the ICC. Several versions of these bilateral agreements have been proposed: those that are reciprocal, those that are non-reciprocal and those that are intended for states that have neither signed nor ratified the Rome Statute. Many governmental, legal and non-governmental experts have concluded that the bilateral immunity agreements being sought by the USA government are contrary to international law and the Rome Statute. In the present article we will describe the bilateral immunity agreements of the USA and we will analyze the legality of these agreements.