ABSTRACT
The International Criminal Court will have jurisdiction in respect of war crimes "in particular when committed as a part of a plan or as part of a large-scale commission of such crimes". The "opt-out" clause is apparently one of the gravest restraints on the Court's jurisdiction. However, the reasons that have led to its acceptance must be considered. It would have been very difficult for most States to accept that officers and members of their armed forces might be taken away from their own jurisdiction in relation to any individual crime committed in time of war. War crimes committed in international armed conflicts are listed in Article 8.2 of the Rome Statute. In order to give clearer guidance to the Court a stronger guidance the United States first took the initiative to include further definitions of the crimes referred to in the Statute.
