Venezuela says it is leaving the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, according to reports on Friday evening.
Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia said the decision had been formally communicated to the United Nations.
The Government of Venezuela accused the court of “geographical bias,” arguing that it focuses too heavily on alleged abuses in countries in the Global South, including in Africa and Latin America.
Venezuela is not the first country to withdraw from the ICC. Burundi and the Philippines have already done so.
Last year, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger also announced plans to follow suit.
Those countries described the court, which investigates crimes including genocide and war crimes, as an “instrument of neocolonial oppression.”
Countries cannot leave the court immediately. They must first notify the head of the UN, after which it takes one year for their withdrawal from the ICC to take formal effect.
