试论国际投资条约如何促进可持续发展

The Research on How International Investment Treaty Promotes Sustainable Development

可持续发展的理念逐渐得到了国际社会的普遍认同,成为一项国际法原则。国际投资条约中的许多国际投资规则虽不能直接促进可持续发展,其规定却可能会严重制约可持续发展目标的实现。因此,要从规则和制度设计上消除不利于可持续发展目标实现的各种因素,对有关的实体规则和投资者诉东道国投资仲裁机制进行批判和解构。修改目前的国际投资条约的某些具体规定以增加政府规制外资的空间,对投资者施加保护环境、保护劳工权利、禁止贿赂等义务的规定,改革国际投资仲裁机制,并增加可持续影响评估程序是值得探索的路径。总体的方向是实现投资者、东道国、投资母国的权利和义务的平衡,通过平衡来实现可持续发展的目标。

Treaty-based International investment rules are in the process of modernization. This process witnesses many features of international investment rules, one of which is that international treaties incorporate the idea of sustainable development, paying much attention on the balance between the protection of investor and the protection of environment, human rights and social development. The idea of sustainable development has been identified by the international community and become the principle of international law. Although many international investment rules cannot promote the sustainable development directly, they can significantly constrain the implementation of sustainable development. We should seek to prevent or mitigate such adverse impacts. It is necessary to reconstruct the substantive rules and Investor-State arbitration system in order to remove the elements of impair the sustainable development. The feasible approach is to modify the existing rules for the purpose of expanding the room of regulate and add the new rules, such as providing for the obligations of investor and home state and assessment of sustainable impact. The general direction is keeping the balance of the rights and obligations between investor, home state and host state.