The EU is considering reviving region-wide free trade negotiations with ASEAN. If Brussels is not to fail again in this endeavour as it did a few years ago, a fresh, flexible approach, to negotiations, respectful of local political realities, is overdue. The more so as the EU has significantly lost …
Investment liberalisation agreements
COMMENT: What an ECJ opinion on EU accession to Europe’s foremost human rights convention means for ISDS
Opinion 2/13 anyone? This is a recent legal opinion of the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice on whether it is legal for the EU to join the European Convention on Human Rights. It has important ramifications for current EU Commission efforts to reform investor-to-state dispute settlement. By Iana Dreyer.
Comment: Centre-right MEPs have seized the moment on ISDS
The EU Parliament centre-right majority group are becoming more visible in the debate on investment protection issues in trade agreements and in TTIP. MEPs from the EPP made an unusual show of presence and responsiveness at the trade committee meeting on 18 March 2015 in which trade commissioner Malmström presented the …
Analysis: Party politics of ISDS in the EU – a moving target
After debates in the European parliament and in the German social-democratic party held this week on investor-to-state dispute settlement (ISDS) in TTIP, only one thing is clear: ISDS is a moving target on the European political scene. By Iana Dreyer.
COMMENT: Turning the tide on deteriorating EU investment protection standards after Lisbon
The standards of investment protection in the European Union (EU) have been lowered at a time when the bloc badly needs private and foreign direct investment, argues Nikos Lavranos in a piece of commentary on the state of investment law on the continent. But the EU can turn the tide …
Blog: Power games – Commission wants member states to apply transparency to ISDS in their BITs
Comment: EU-China trade and investment files – another five years of impasse?
In a speech to the Brussels business community, Cecilia Malmström set out the European Commission’s approach to China. The trade commissioner’s talk indicates there will likely not be much change in the way Brussels deals with the giant Asian country. European businesses wanting the EU to open more markets in China for them might …
TTIP and the European politics of ISDS: what next?
[sh_light_text ]The European Commission decided last week to buy time over investor protection clauses in the planned transatlantic trade and investment partnership (TTIP) after it published the largely negative results of a public consultation over the matter. So: what next? Iana Dreyer has gathered the views of a few veterans …
European trade policy: outlook and challenges for 2015
[sh_light_text ]The new year festivities in Europe are over. In 2015 the EU will face a busy trade policy agenda and some daunting challenges in fulfilling its objectives and promoting its interests. We outline some of them.[/sh_light_text]
After Malmström in Berlin – German government not likely to oppose ISDS in CETA and TTIP
After European trade commissioner Malmström’s visit to Berlin on Monday, the likelihood that the Canada-EU trade deal (CETA) finalised last September will be derailed because of German opposition to its investor-to-state dispute settlement (ISDS) clauses appears extremely low. So are the odds that Germany will oppose ISDS in the ongoing transatlantic trade and investment partnership …
