Washington is preparing to escalate its long-running feud with the International Criminal Court. An announcement imposing sanctions on the court itself could come within days, according to diplomats. The move would mark a significant broadening of earlier threats, which until now have focused on individual judges and prosecutors.

The trigger is the ICC’s willingness to probe alleged crimes involving close American allies. By targeting the institution as a whole, the United States risks deepening its isolation from many of its European partners, who continue to defend the court as central to international justice. The coming clash underscores a familiar paradox: America champions the rule of law abroad, but balks when legal scrutiny touches its own interests.