The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is pressuring African states to leave the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to sources close to the Court in The Hague, as reported in an exclusive article by Le Monde published on August 4.

According to the sources, the U.S. is employing two forms of pressure in this campaign.

First, Washington is allegedly spreading disinformation. The U.S. claims that the authorities of the targeted countries themselves risk being prosecuted by the ICC.

“Chad, which was recently criticized by NGOs for its support of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan, reportedly felt vulnerable as a result. However, the likelihood of such prosecutions being initiated is considered ‘unlikely,’” the sources stated.

The second method the U.S. is using, according to the report, is threatening to terminate security agreements with countries that refuse to leave the ICC. Le Monde reports that multiple African ICC member states are targets of this American campaign.

“At the end of July, several African ICC member states received phone calls, visits, and letters from the United States. For example, Uganda received a letter on July 24 containing an ultimatum to leave the Court, or face consequences,” one of the sources explained.