External publications

The EU-China investment agreement negotiations: rationale, motivations, and contentious issues

Berger, Axel
External Publications (2020)

in: Li, Yuwen / Tong Qi / Cheng Bian (eds.), China, the EU and international investment law: reforming investor-state dispute settlement, Abington: Routledge, 11-25

ISBN: 978-0-42932-233-4
Information

China and the European Union (EU) entered into the negotiation of a comprehensive agreement on investment (CAI) agreement in 2013. These negotiations have not only great importance for the promotion of bilateral investment relations between China and the EU but also for the global investment regime. In light of the substantial revision by China and the EU of their international investment agreement (IIA) approaches in recent years the negotiations are far from being a sure-fire success. These revisions took place, inter alia, against the background of changing preferences in light of growing Chinese outward foreign investments and controversial discussion about the scope and substance of the new competence of the European Union for the negotiation of IIAs. Both China and the EU have also been subject to investment treaty claims that influenced their thinking about the need to revise both substantive and procedural investment agreement provisions. Against this background, this chapter will provide an overview of the contentious issues in the negotiations towards an EU-China investment agreement. Given the fact that other chapters of this volume are dealing in depth with the investor-state arbitration this chapter will focus on substantive provisions such as market access, investment protection and social and environmental standards. The main emphasis will be on the European perspective.