Title 22, Foreign Relations and IntercourseRelease 119-110

§7424 Restriction on United States Participation in Certain United Nations Peacekeeping Operations

Title 22 › CHAPTER 81 — INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT › SUBCHAPTER II — AMERICAN SERVICEMEMBERS’ PROTECTION › § 7424

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

When the Rome Statute becomes effective under Article 126, U.S. service members may not join any United Nations peacekeeping (Chapter VI) or peace enforcement (Chapter VII) mission that the Security Council authorizes on or after that date unless the President sends a certification to the appropriate congressional committees. The law also says the President should use the United States’ voice and vote on the Security Council to try to get each mission’s resolution to permanently protect U.S. troops from being prosecuted by the International Criminal Court. The President’s certification must say one of three things: the Security Council resolution permanently shielded U.S. forces from ICC jurisdiction; or every country where U.S. forces will be present either is not an ICC party and has not accepted ICC jurisdiction under Article 12 or has an Article 98 agreement blocking ICC action against U.S. forces; or U.S. national interests justify participation despite ICC risks.

Full Legal Text

Title 22, §7424

Foreign Relations and Intercourse, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Policy

Effective beginning on the date on which the Rome Statute enters into force pursuant to Article 126 of the Rome Statute, the President should use the voice and vote of the United States in the United Nations Security Council to ensure that each resolution of the Security Council authorizing any peacekeeping operation under chapter VI of the charter of the United Nations or peace enforcement operation under chapter VII of the charter of the United Nations permanently exempts, at a minimum, members of the Armed Forces of the United States participating in such operation from criminal prosecution or other assertion of jurisdiction by the International Criminal Court for actions undertaken by such personnel in connection with the operation.

(b)Restriction

Members of the Armed Forces of the United States may not participate in any peacekeeping operation under chapter VI of the charter of the United Nations or peace enforcement operation under chapter VII of the charter of the United Nations, the creation of which is authorized by the United Nations Security Council on or after the date that the Rome Statute enters into effect pursuant to Article 126 of the Rome Statute, unless the President has submitted to the appropriate congressional committees a certification described in subsection (c) with respect to such operation.

(c)Certification

The certification referred to in subsection (b) is a certification by the President that—

(1)members of the Armed Forces of the United States are able to participate in the peacekeeping or peace enforcement operation without risk of criminal prosecution or other assertion of jurisdiction by the International Criminal Court because, in authorizing the operation, the United Nations Security Council permanently exempted, at a minimum, members of the Armed Forces of the United States participating in the operation from criminal prosecution or other assertion of jurisdiction by the International Criminal Court for actions undertaken by them in connection with the operation;

(2)members of the Armed Forces of the United States are able to participate in the peacekeeping or peace enforcement operation without risk of criminal prosecution or other assertion of jurisdiction by the International Criminal Court because each country in which members of the Armed Forces of the United States participating in the operation will be present either is not a party to the International Criminal Court and has not invoked the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court pursuant to Article 12 of the Rome Statute, or has entered into an agreement in accordance with Article 98 of the Rome Statute preventing the International Criminal Court from proceeding against members of the Armed Forces of the United States present in that country; or

(3)the national interests of the United States justify participation by members of the Armed Forces of the United States in the peacekeeping or peace enforcement operation.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

22 U.S.C. § 7424

Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110