The idea of establishing an international court to prosecute
serious international crimes--war crimes, crimes against
humanity, and genocide--has long held a special place in the
hearts of human rights activists and those hoping to hold
perpetrators of terrible crimes to account. In 1998, that idea
became reality when the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court was adopted at a diplomatic conference convened
by the U.N. General Assembly. Formally established in 2002, the
International Criminal Court (ICC) was created to prosecute war
crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and the as yet
undefined crime of aggression. Regrettably, a number of concerns
remain about how ratification of the Rome Statute would affect
U.S. sovereignty and what consequences ICC action could have on
politically precarious situations around the world. Past U.S.
Administrations concluded that the Rome Statute created a
seriously flawed institution that lacks prudent safeguards
against political manipulation, possesses swee