U.S. CONCLUDES REVIEWING BILATERAL INVESTMENT TREATY

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
United States Concludes Review of Model Bilateral Investment Treaty
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
April 20, 2012
The following is the text of a joint statement issued by the U.S. Department of State and the Office of the United States Trade Representative.
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Today, the U.S. Department of State and the Office of the United States Trade Representative announced the conclusion of the Administration’s review of the United States’ model bilateral investment treaty (BIT) and the release of the revised 2012 model BIT.

International investment is a significant driver of America’s economic growth, job creation, and exports. The 2012 U.S. model BIT text will help achieve several important goals of the Obama Administration ensuring that U.S. companies benefit from a level playing field in foreign markets, providing effective mechanisms for enforcing the international obligations of our economic partners, and creating stronger labor and environmental protections.

The 2012 model BIT also supports our strategic international commitment to a robust economic agenda. It will play a critical role in ensuring that American firms can rely on strong legal protections when competing for the 95 percent of the world’s consumers who live outside the United States, as well as in promoting good governance, the rule of law, and transparency around the world.

Like the predecessor 2004 model BIT, the 2012 model BIT continues to provide strong investor protections and preserve the government’s ability to regulate in the public interest. The Administration made several important changes to the BIT text so as to enhance transparency and public participation; sharpen the disciplines that address preferential treatment to state-owned enterprises, including the distortions created by certain indigenous innovation policies; and strengthen protections relating to labor and the environment.

BACKGROUND
Since February 2009, when the Administration initiated a review of the United States’ (2004) model BIT to ensure that it was consistent with the public interest and the Administration’s overall economic agenda, the Administration has sought and received extensive input from Congress, companies, business associations, labor groups, environmental and other non-governmental organizations, and academics. While revisions to the model BIT do not require Congressional action, negotiated BITs require advice and consent of two thirds of the Senate.

A BIT is an international agreement that provides binding legal rules regarding one country’s treatment of investors from another country. The United States negotiates BITs on the basis of a high-standard “model” text that provides investors with improved market access; protection from discriminatory, expropriatory, or otherwise harmful government treatment; and a mechanism to pursue binding international arbitration for breaches of the treaty. High-standard BITs, such as those based on the U.S. model, improve investment climates, promote market-based economic reform, and strengthen the rule of law. The United States has more than 40 BITs in force with countries around the world, and the investment chapters of U.S. free trade agreements (FTAs) contain substantially similar rules and protections. USTR and the Department of State co-lead the U.S. BIT program.

EUROPEAN UNION, U.S. SAY BOTH COMMITTED TO OPEN, TRANSPARENT, AND NON-DISCRIMINATORY INVESTMENT POLICIES

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
United States, European Union Reaffirm Commitment to Open, Transparent, and Non-Discriminatory Investment Policies
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
April 10, 2012
Following is the text of a joint statement issued by the U.S. Department of State and the United States Trade Representative.
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Today, the United States and the European Union (EU), under the auspices of the Transatlantic Economic Council, announced an agreement on Shared Principles for International Investment, which reaffirms our commitment to open, transparent, and non-discriminatory international investment policies. International investment, both by American companies abroad and by foreign companies in the United States, benefits U.S. companies and American workers by creating high-paying jobs, boosting exports, and spurring innovation in the United States.

U.S. Cabinet-level principals and EU commissioners attending a Transatlantic Economic Council meeting on November 29, 2011, urged that a joint set of international investment principles be developed to strengthen our collaborative efforts to foster open investment policies worldwide. These principles would guide the United States and EU and the governments of third countries in developing future investment policies. The United States looks forward to working with the EU to promote the principles around the world, including through the G8 Deauville Partnership with countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

The principles embody a number of shared core values, including a commitment to open and non-discriminatory investment policies, a level competitive playing field, strong protections for investors and their investments, neutral and binding international dispute settlement, strong rules on transparency and public participation, responsible business conduct, and narrowly-tailored reviews of national security considerations. The joint statement recognizes that governments can fully embrace these principles without compromising their ability to regulate in the public interest.
The principles are available at USTR’s website  and at the Department of State’s website.

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
FROM:  DEPARTMENT OF STATE 
About the Transatlantic Economic Council

Mission

Created by a joint framework for advancing transatlantic economic cooperation, the Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) is the primary plenary forum for economic dialogue between the United States and the European Union. The TEC works to facilitate agreement on a wide range of economically important issues managed through its Current Workplan. Meeting at least once per year, the co-chairs of the TEC – White House Deputy National Special Advisor for International Economic Affairs and European Commission Vice President for Trade – promote dialogue and agreement to further integrate the transatlantic economies. Across a spectrum of interrelated issues, the TEC seeks to eliminate trade barriers, implement best practices, harmonize standards, and develop market access.

History

Following the 2007 U.S.-EU Summit, a Declaration on Enhancing Transatlantic Economic Integration and Growth laid the foundation for a growth driven agenda of cooperative dialogue. Since then, the TEC has built upon the historical and on-going transatlantic economic integration to identify new areas of cooperation.