Venezuela exits ICC, appoints new military command

On 24 July 2026 interim President Delcy Rodríguez ordered Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia to file a formal notice with the UN that Venezuela will withdraw from the International Criminal Court under Article 127 of the Rome Statute. The withdrawal was described on X as “firm and irrevocable” and justified by the government as a response to alleged geographic bias that it says disproportionately targets African and Latin American states. The National Assembly’s December 2025 repeal of the Rome Statute enabled the step, and the ICC’s investigations into alleged 2017 protest‑crackdown crimes will continue during the one‑year notice period.

The same day Rodríguez reshaped the senior military command, appointing General in Chief Gustavo González López as Minister of Defense and assigning Major General Rubén Belzares, Admiral Víctor Borjas and Major General Juan Ernesto Sulbarán to lead the Army, Navy, Air Force and National Guard respectively. A ceremony the following day also signaled a gradual resumption of consular relations with Peru.

The U.S. State Department welcomed the withdrawal, labeling the ICC “corrupt, useless, not credible, independent nor legitimate” and urging other states to abandon the Rome Statute. NGOs such as Provea and the Committee for the Freedom of Political Prisoners continued to condemn the exit, while the ICC reiterated that Venezuela remains bound by the Statute for one year and must cooperate with ongoing investigations.