A Research On Environmental Protection Clauses Of China's International Investment Agreements Under "the Belt And Road" Initiative

The UNCTAD World Investment Report 2012 believes that the inclusion of the principle of sustainable development in international investment agreements(IIAs)is becoming or has become a significant manifestation of changes in the content of IIAs.The “Belt and Road Initiative” is a development initiative under the guidance of the principle of sustainable development,which is highly consistent with the ideas and purposes of the principle.However,in the areas and industrial sectors of the “Belt and Road Initiative”,the problems of sustainable development are severe.Although the China-Singapore Agreement on the Promotion and Protection of Investments incorporated environmental protection issues into the implementation requirements of the Agreement for the first time in 1985,the IIAs between China and the countries related to the “Belt and Road Initiative” were signed earlier,many of which did not include environmental protection clauses.Also,the preamble of these IIAs did not contain any statements of environmental protection.From the 1990 s,some countries began to pay attention to the design of environmental protection clauses in bilateral investment agreements and free trade agreements,gradually producing environmental protection clauses in the preamble and about fulfilling requirements,indirect expropriation and international cooperation model.This reflects the requirements of sustainable development and helps host countries avoid the risk of indirect expropriation caused by its environmental measures.In consideration of the increasingly closerelationship between investment and environmental protection and the status of the principle of sustainable development in international investment policy,environmental protection clauses of IIAs are consistent with the idea of green development under the “Belt and Road Initiative”.When China sign or amend IIAs with countries under the“Belt and Road Initiative” in the future,it should pay attention to the following items: improving existing environmental protection clauses,clarifying in the preamble of investment agreements and reasonably setting up indirect expropriation clauses;adding new content of environmental protection clauses,e.g.,effectively coordinating relations with multilateral environmental agreements,and increasing investor's responsibilities on environmental protection.