Advanced economies, and in particular China and the US, are engaging in a new technological arms race. China is trying to catch up technologically to the US and the US is doing everything it can to prevent that from happening. It perceives Chinese technological advances as a threat to its national security. Outbound investment screening mechanisms are the latest tool being developed to prevent that threat from materializing. Yet, they sit in a vacuum in international economic law, unregulated under both international trade and investment rules.
International Economic Law
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When Reinforced Self-Judgment Meets Judicial Review: Insights from Seda v. Colombia
On 27 June 2024, the tribunal in the investment dispute Seda v Colombia delivered a long-awaited award. The decision, hailed by Colombia as ‘historic’, represents the first publicly available award where an investment tribunal accepted the ‘self-judging’ character of a provision within an investment agreement. Additionally, it is the first public award to dismiss an entire…
China’s Duties to Prevent and Redress the Human Rights Impacts of the Belt and Road Initiative
China’s massive Belt and Road Initiative continues to expand its project financing activities to around 147 countries in the world as of this writing. This exceptional global footprint, undertaken primarily through sovereign lending or sovereign-driven financing, puts China in a privileged position of international responsibility to ensure respect, protection, and fulfillment of human rights in global…
People from La Oroya vs Peru, Inter-American Court of Human Rights: How Effective is International Law to Protect the Environment in Extractive Contexts?
On March 22nd, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruled a landmark decision on the protection of the right to a healthy environment in the context of mining activities. The Court declared the international responsibility of the Peruvian State for breaching the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights, specifically for violations of the right to a…
How a documentary film can help UNCITRAL Working Group III think through ISDS reform
As states explore options to reform investment treaties and investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), they can draw on a growing body of grounded perspectives about how the system works in practice and how it is experienced by those involved in or affected by investment disputes. The Tribunal, a documentary film directed by Malcolm Rogge in collaboration…