US signs anti-ICC immunity pact with Bhutan

Hindustan Times ^ | May 21 2003 | AFP

[knighthawk]

The United States has signed a deal with Bhutan giving US citizens in the country immunity from prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC), the State Department said Tuesday.

The deal with Bhutan brings to 34 the number of countries with which the United States has signed so-called "Article 98" agreements exempting US citizens from the court's jurisdiction, said Lynn Cassel, a department spokesman.

Bhutan and Bosnia-Herzegovina both agreed to the pacts on May 16 but the deal with Thimphu was not announced until Tuesday.

Washington refuses to support the ICC, arguing that it could become a forum for politically motivated prosecutions against US citizens, including civilian military contractors and former officials, and has been on a worldwide campaign to sign immunity deals since the court came into being last July.

Since last July, when the treaty creating the ICC came into effect, the United States has signed immunity deals with 34 countries.

In addition to the ones with Bhutan and Bosnia, the other countries to have signed such agreements with Washington are:

Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Djibouti, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Dominican Republic, East Timor, El Salvador, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Honduras, India, Israel, Madagascar, Maldives, the Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Micronesia, Nauru, Nepal, Palau, Romania, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Tonga, Tuvalu and Uzbekistan.

[knighthawk]

Ping

[facedown]

In addition to the ones with Bhutan and Bosnia, the other countries to have signed such agreements with Washington are: XXXXXXXXXX

And we signed for Iraq. Hehehe.

[marron]

Fax Brussels a copy of the agreement, and tell them to initial it and fax it back. They can follow with a signed copy by Fedex.

Or else start looking at office space in Bucharest for the new stripped-down NATO HQ.

[Mark17]

US signs anti-ICC immunity pact with Bhutan

I pride myself on being reasonably well informed, and good at geography, but I do not have a clue where this place is. Can you tell me where it is?

[cake_crumb]

Where are the Freepers who jump on these ICC threads to inform us that the Bush administration has (somehow) let the ICC go through (though it was never ratified, just as Kyoto wasn't)?

[Asclepius]

... Mauritania ...

Man, can those Mauritanians party!

And now they'll party with immunity. It's good to be a Mauritanian right now. Damn good.

[knighthawk]

Here is their site:

http://www.kingdomofbhutan.com/

This is what the CIA has to say about them:

http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/bt.html

[UCFRoadWarrior]

Interesting looking at the list of nations who have signed agreements w US on ICC....a lot from the former USSR and its satellites.

Congrats to those nations who have signed the agreements....the ICC is one of the most bigoted anti-American pieces of s--- ever to be produced.

[Tailgunner Joe]

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