Investment Dispute Settlement Mechanism in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative

Abstract

The Belt and Road Initiative has the potential to update current investment dispute settlement mechanism established by China and its partner countries. According to the practical contexts of the Belt and Road region, this article evaluates the trade-offs associated with existing, emerging, and proposed investment dispute settlement mechanisms, including informal means, domestic courts, interstate investment dispute settlement mechanisms, ISDS (Investor-State Dispute Settlement), regional investment court and international tribunal review. The article emphasizes that no single investment settlement mechanism is sufficient to resolve all disputes related to the Belt and Road Initiative and the complementarity among different mechanisms is necessary. The platform and special nature of the Belt and Road Initiative are able to support both the improvement of the current mechanisms and the establishment of the newly proposed mechanisms.

Keywords: Investment Dispute Settlement, Belt and Road Initiative

DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/81-04

Publication date: November 30^th 2022