Trump’s war on the ICC goes digital with Microsoft as an ally

When Microsoft locked an ICC prosecutor from E -mails, Paul Budde proved how easily the US power can reach the borders and the heart of global justice.

Last EVENT including Microsoft and the International Criminal Court (ICC) It should send a chill to the backbone of each democratic nation. Following a sanction order Donald TrumpWhite House, Microsoft Locked ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan Corporate level office 365 account. This account was not personal – part of the ICC’s corporate infrastructure.

And like this, an American technology giant has prevented access to an important international legal actor.

I was really surprised that Microsoft lived with him. Public explanations try to underestimate the movement, claiming that the services of ICC have not been suspended and that it is not only suspended to a “approved person”. But this is a textbook of half of the glass. What it shows in practice is that if a US approved by a USA works in a foreign institution, American companies can reach and reach the junction of this institution.

This should be the end of any illusion that digital infrastructure is neutral or apolitical.

At the same time deep hypocritical. Here we banned Chinese platforms in Australia Huawei From critical infrastructure due to foreign intervention concerns. We were rightly concerned about another country that controls access to our communication and data. And now, since the so-called ally, the United States, the United States, does not like an international prosecutor’s research, can unilateral access to cloud-based systems from government e-mails to court records.

This is not just an e -mail account.

Globally, almost all state data, personal records, communication services and modern financial systems are hosted on US platforms: Microsoft, Google and Amazon. These companies do not only give power to your incoming box; They support ministries, parliaments, hospitals and courts in countries around the world. In fact, they are customized means of sovereignty.

We’ve seen this game before. Trump in 2020 approved ICC officials are investigating US military actions in Afghanistan. These sanctions were removed under the former President Bikter. Now, under a new Trump administration, the arms are pulling again. This is an authoritarian reflex: Eliminate armed emergency powers, target international institutions and legal norms. And when a technology platform is suitable, the result is creepy.

From Hungary to Russia, to Türkiye, it reflects a wider pattern that we see in the authoritarian states in which the opposition is used to silence, skip legal systems and skip the power forces. What is different here is done through digital rear channels. Authoritarianism offered as cloud service.

And in the most extremely historical example, Nazi used Germany. 1933 Reichstag Fire justify comprehensive forces Activation lawEffective dismissal Weimar Republic and centralizing all the authority below Hitler. This began with the belief that legal tools, public fear and “temporary” measures were right for greater goodness.

Worse, it is the normalization of all of them. We continue with the titles of “Microsoft Cuts ICC Access”. Sociologist Alexei Yurchak He created a term for this: hypernormization – We claim that everyone knows the system, but we all claim to be normal because no one can imagine how to change them.

This is the risk we face right now. We were very dependent on these platforms, we stopped asking who controlled them and as a result who controlled us.

I mentioned a similar point in a previous article about the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCS). There, I warned that even basic financial systems may be under indirect influence of foreign governments unless they take real steps to create independent and transparent digital infrastructure of countries. This risk is no longer abstract. We watch the real -time play, and the ICC event shows how fast it can rise to law, justice and governance beyond the economy.

In previous articles, including those written with Hendrik Rood, I also discussed the structural separation of digital services from the extraterrestrial access of US laws. The fact that a prosecutor in an international court can be locked from official systems due to the American political directive proves the urgency of this argument.

But this is not a call for isolation. Countries like Australia cannot go alone. What we need is the strategic cooperation between the similar thinking democracies-Europe, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea. Europe has already begun to propose military and digital sovereignty. Gaia-x And GDPR. Australia should be completely compatible with this agenda without watching the edges.

Now, if we do not take action, we will confront ourselves with the risk of digital disarmament; Not by competitors, but by allies who believe that their laws have shadow our sovereignty.

ICC E -Post block is not a glitch. A look at a future in which sovereignty exists in the pleasure of the cloud provider. If we believe in the rule of law, democratic independence and national dignity, we need to take back the infrastructure control that holds our societies together.

Because if we don’t, someone else will do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j96dqspfqcg

Paul Budde is an independent Australian columnist and general manager Paul Budde ConsultingAn independent telecommunications research and consultancy organization. You can follow Paul on Twitter @Paulbudde.

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