A great small step

The (international court) institution set up in Rome will deliver no visible results for a long time. It will be years before it meets and opens legal proceedings, and the extension of its jurisdiction across the globe is not foreseeable.

Even so, the apparently pragmatic conclusion that the court is not much use is itself unrealistic.

The conviction that impunity for crimes against humanity is not only morally unacceptable, but also has a disastrous effect on the development of democracy, has now found a place in political calculations outside Europe.

At the conference, countries such as South Africa, Argentina and Jordan played active roles. Burundi and other developing nations are participating.

The court has found a place in all parts of the world, so the first condition for it to be useful has been fulfilled.

The second aspect is that European nations resisted U.S. pressure at least enough to prevent the court becoming a dud.

It has a basic independence and relevant jurisdiction.

This firmness is not just an act of defiance against the latest arrogant display of U.S. supremacy.

-- Basler Zeitung, Basel, Switzerland