Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali announced their withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday – continuing on a trajectory of distancing themselves from international organizations in favour of closer alignment with Russia.
As per Reuters, the leaders of Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali described the ICC as an “instrument of neo-colonial oppression” in a joint statement, adding that they intended to replace it with indigenous mechanisms for promoting peace and justice.
“The ICC has proven itself incapable of handling and prosecuting proven war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes of genocide, and crimes of aggression,” the three leaders said, although they did not specify in which cases they believe the ICC has fallen short.
According to the court’s rules, their withdrawal will take effect one year from now.
Often called the Hague after the Dutch city where it is based, the ICC was established in 2002 as the world’s first and only permanent court to try the gravest crimes of concern to the international community – notably genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression.
The ICC derives its authority from the Rome Statute, a multilateral treaty that was initially signed by 137 countries. The withdrawal of the three west African states will bring the current list of signatories down to 122.
Their statement cited a persistent claim that the ICC disproportionately targets African states – a senior African Union official made this accusation as early as 2013. But it also echoed the comments of Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó after the Hungarian legislature voted to withdraw from the court in April this year.
“With this decision, we refuse to be part of a politicized institution that has lost its impartiality and credibility,” he said.
Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali are all ruled by military juntas which took power after overthrowing their previous governments. In early 2025, they withdrew from the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) after it urged Niger to restore democratic rule.
Instead, the three countries formed a new regional bloc – the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS).
Like Hungary, all three ASS countries have close links with Russia. The Wagner Group, an infamous Russian private military company, has over 2,000 fighters stationed in Mali alone.
The ICC issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his children’s rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova in 2023, alleging that they are responsible for the abduction and transfer of thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Although Russia was one of the original signatories of the Rome Statute, Putin declared that Russia no longer intended to ratify it in 2016 – after the ICC ruled that its annexation of Crimea amounted to an “ongoing occupation,” as per the BBC.