International Criminal Court in National Systems: Italy

This paper will first illustrate Italy’s role in the fight against impunity and the enforcement of international criminal law (ICL) in general, thereafter focusing on the need to incorporate in domestic law the crimes under the Rome Statute in compliance with the complementarity principle and the obligation to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC). As we will show, the effective implementation of the Statute in the national system is fundamental to guarantee the prosecution of crimes under international law, and ensure that the ICC is able to operate successfully, thereby adhering to the general obligation of States to implement treaties in good faith as codified in the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.