WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- A study by the Henry L. Stimson Center in Washington has recorded shifting opinions from U.S. military officials on the International Criminal Court.
Victoria Holt, a senior associate at the security research center, co-authored the study, which found that U.S. military officials, policymakers and politicians who attended a workshop on the court were drifting away from the Bush administration's opposition to the body, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
David Scheffer, a workshop participant and Clinton administration ambassador for war crimes issues, said most military officers who attended the event were dropping the idea that the court would be used as a "battering ram against the United States," and instead expressed concern that the United States could give other countries the impression that it does not respect internationally accepted rules of war if it refuses to support the ICC.
"It conveys the image that we are simply intimidated by the prospect of international justice and that we have to browbeat other countries to minimize the risk we may have before the court," Scheffer said.
