ABSTRACT
Asian economics are actively engaging in promoting international investment cooperation and increasingly becoming important sources of capital exporting. In the process of global rule making on international investment, these actors tend to incorporate their values and interests into international investment agreements (IIAs) and try to embrace high standards in these treaties. China, as a large Asian player, is also involved in this trend. The dual role of China, as capital-exporting and -importing country, and its intention to support and advance Belt and Road initiative, are likely to affect China’s stance towards IIAs. It also requires China to reflect or embed its values in the policy- and rule-making process. This chapter will show China’s current position towards IIAs and discuss major factors that China is likely to consider in its future investment treaties. It will do so by analysing the role of China and the implications of Chinese overseas investment, examining its recent treaty practices to illustrate its changing view towards investment protection and discussing China’s interests and concerns of other major recipient countries. Based on these discussions, it will further provide suggestions regarding China’s interests that need to be reflected in treaty negotiations.
