The International Criminal Court’s New Creatures: Post-preliminary Examination Cooperation Agreements

The article examines a recent practice of the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. The practice consists in the adoption of a cooperation agreement following the closing of a preliminary examination, with the Head of State of the concerned country. It was initiated after the closing of Situation in Colombia in October 2021, and repeated after the closing of Situation in Guinea in September 2022. In the absence of a legal basis allowing for the conclusion of such “post-preliminary examination cooperation agreements” in the Rome Statute framework, the article analyses their legal nature, as it is a necessary step to determine their validity under international law and capacity to generate binding obligations upon their parties.