Research On International Investment Legal Issues Of China’s Participation In Arctic Non-Living Natural Resources Development Of The Five Nordic Countries

Due to the geographical position and the attitude of the Arctic countries, China cannot directly obtain and exploit the Arctic resources. In the Arctic countries, five Nordic countries, including Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Sweden, and Finland, have an open investment environment, with whom through bilateral investment agreements and other ways China has constructed good bilateral legal relationships and has always maintained close and friendly relations of cooperation in trade and economy. Investments in Arctic non-living natural resources within the five Nordic countries provide opportunities and possibilities for China to actually exploit Arctic.Therefore, this paper has researched on the legal environment of domestic investments, by studying and integrating specific investment legislations of the five Nordic countries, defining the legal relationship and advantages of investments between China and Nordic countries, analyzing the impact of geopolitics to China’s investments in Arctic non-living natural resources within the five Nordic countries and countcrmeasures, and rethinking the method of using domestic law to solve international legal problems.Firstly, this paper points out that the investment legal path in Arctic non-living natural resources within the five Nordic countries is a realistic choice for China to obtain Arctic resources and interests. On the one hand, the development and utilization of Arctic non-living natural resources are facing the dual challenges of both the boundary disputes among Arctic countries and inconsistent legal status and management mechanism of the Arctic. On the other hand, China’s rights in accordance with Convention on the Law of the Sea are difficult to achieve under complex political situations and legal norms of the Arctic region. Hence China should find a new way to acquire benefits from the Arctic through investment legal path that has fewer thresholds and lower political sensitivity. In the Arctic countries, the five Nordic countries, which are rich in Arctic resources, have an open investment legal environment, providing convenience and space for China’s capital entry.Secondly, this paper systematically analyzes the investment five legal environment of the five Nordic countries. In the domestic legal system of the five Nordic countries, they all have legislations on international investments and Arctic non-living natural resources development, which regulate the investments by foreign capitals on development of Arctic non-living natural resources. The legal norms of the five countries on development of non-living natural resources have many similarities, within which and government statements the relevant official claims are also demonstrated. This paper arranges and integrates the relevant investment legal environment of the five Nordic countries as a whole.Furthermore, this paper respectively reviews on investment legal documents between China and five Nordic countries, and integrates the investment legal relations between China and five Nordic countries in accordance with international investment law framework. On the basis of the foregoing, the paper summarizes the open and vast investment space for Chinese capital entry provided by non-living natural resources investment legal environment of the five Nordic countries. At the same time attention is paid to the official position and statements of the five Nordic countries on China’s participation in the Arctic affairs and development of Arctic resources, to prove the feasibility and operability of legal path for China’-s investment in the Arctic resources of the five Nordic countries.Based on the above, this paper finds that the Arctic countries have set up more entry barriers for foreign capitals to participate in the development of Arctic non-living natural resources under the influence of the geopolitical factors, where China may be involved in non-commercial risks such as national security review risk and government chartered review during China’s participation in Arctic non-living natural resources development. In this regard, methods can be taken such as constructing non-commercial risk assessment, early warning system and overseas investment insurance system; encouraging private enterprises to invest and or so. In addition, China’s bilateral investment treaties and domestic legislation should make some corresponding improvements, to deal with geopolitical entry barriers to investment in the Nordic countries.Finally, this paper ponders over the traditional solutions on international legal problems, and discovers that while some problems are difficult to solve by the international law, solving them by the domestic law is an effective way and can obtain actual benefits.