CARACAS, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela announced Friday that it will withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying that the tribunal based in The Hague has shown "geographical bias" against Latin American and African countries.

Foreign Minister Felix Plasencia wrote on X that Venezuela had informed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of its "firm and irrevocable" decision to denounce the Rome Statute and begin its definitive withdrawal from the ICC under Article 127.

Plasencia said the court had disproportionately focused its work "to the detriment of the Global South," while perpetuating what he called the persecution of the Venezuelan people and worsening inequalities.

He said the court's actions showed an international justice system being used to "deepen inequalities among peoples and disregard their right to self-determination and sovereignty."

According to media reports, the ICC announced in 2021 that it would investigate possible crimes against humanity by the Venezuelan government during a crackdown on anti-government protests in 2017. Venezuela's National Assembly voted in December 2025 to withdraw from its commitments under the Rome Statute.

Plasencia reiterated Venezuela's commitment to what he called genuinely equitable justice that respects sovereignty and the self-determination of peoples. ■