A United Nations fact-finding body focused on Venezuela declared Monday it is “gravely concerned” about the country’s decision to pull out of the International Criminal Court, and it is urging Venezuela to reverse course and rejoin the body.
Venezuela’s government announced Friday that it had made an “irrevocable” choice to exit the court, claiming the institution suffers from a “geographical bias.”
The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela, which was established by the UN Human Rights Council back in 2019, said the withdrawal is an attempt by the Venezuelan government to dodge international accountability processes.
The mission stated that Venezuela has taken no meaningful steps over more than a decade to investigate serious violations of human rights or international crimes committed within its borders.
In a formal statement, the mission declared that the exit “serves only to reinforce impunity for human rights violations,” and called on the country to fully cooperate with international justice mechanisms.
Back in 2020, the ICC determined there was a reasonable basis to believe that civilian officials, military members, and pro-government individuals had committed crimes against humanity in Venezuela dating back to at least 2017.
In January 2025, the ICC shut down its office in Caracas, pointing to a lack of cooperation from the Venezuelan government, which at that time was led by former President Nicolas Maduro.
Interim President Delcy Rodriguez has since become a close ally of the Trump administration. The U.S. has stated its intention to work toward dismantling the ICC, and on Friday it welcomed Venezuela’s withdrawal, calling the court “corrupt” and “worthless.”
