Normative Influence of the European Union in the Field of International Investment Law

International audienceThe EU has obtained exclusive competence over Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) since the Treaty of Lisbon modified Article 207 TFEU. As the main issuer and destination of FDI worldwide, the position of the EU regarding International Investment Agreements (IIAs) may drastically modify the legal Framework of International Investment Law (IIL). Therefore, this study relies on the criteria put forward by Laurent COHEN-TANUGI in order to assess if the EU has gained normative influence in the field of IIL. We first observed that the EU has developed a consistent position regarding IIAs provisions, a first important step towards normative influence. By comparing the content of EU FTAs to its negotiating partners usual practice and studying the first developments of the EU’s proposal for a Multilateral Investment Court, we also put forward the first signs of EU’s normative influence, even though it has difficulties to become global. Nevertheless, these first signs of could be hindered by a growing opposition to investments’ protection among EU citizens. These oppositions have existed both at the EU level and national level, IIAs being mixed agreements. Those may be precluding the EU to conclude IIAs and therefore to gain normative influence. We, thus, explored two possible pathways for the EU to conclude these agreements in spite of oppositions. However, these pathways would not be convenient ways for the EU to get normative influence. This leads to the conclusion that the EU will not have a global normative influence as long as its policy regarding IIL does not get support from the public inside the EU