Bit by Bit: Growth of Bilateral Investment Treaties and their Impact on Foreign Investment in Developing Countries
Author(s)
Salacuse, Jeswald
Abstract
The general effect of the BIT (bilateral investment treaties) movement has beent o establish an increasingly dense network of treaty relationships between capital-exporting states and developing countries. THis trend appears likely to continue, and indeed accelerate, in the future. The Third World’s increasing need for capital, its lack of other financial alternatives, and its growing willingness to accept foreign investment will undoubtedly lead it to sign many more BITs in the years ahead. As t he nations of Eastern Europe seek to attract foreign capital, they too may conclude BITs with capital-exporting states. This article examines the BIT phenomenon, the process by which it has come about, the substantive rules it has created, and the effect it has had on foreign investment transactions.
