AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINAAND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE POLISH PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC ON THE RECIPROCALENCOURAGEMENT AND PROTECTION OF INVESTMENTS
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINAAND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE POLISH PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC ON THE RECIPROCALENCOURAGEMENT AND PROTECTION OF INVESTMENTS
Whole Doc.
The Government of the People's Republic of China and The Government
of the Polish People's Republic (hereinafter referred to as a "Contracting
Party").
Desiring to encourage, protect and create favourable conditions for
investments by investors of one Contracting Party in the territory of the
other Contracting Party based on the principles of mutual respect for
sovereignty, equality and mutual benefit and for the purpose of the
development of economic co-operation between both States, have agreed as
follows:
Article 1
For the purposes of this Agreement,
(a) the term "investments" means every kind of asset made as
investment in accordance with the laws and regulations of the Contracting
Party accepting the investment in its territory, including mainly:
(i) movable and immovable property and other rights inrem;
(ii) shares in companies or other form of interest in such companies;
(iii) a claim to money or to any performance having an economic
value;
(iv) copyrights, industrial property rights, know-how and technical
process;
(b) the term "investor" means:
(i) any natural person who is a citizen of one of the Contracting
Parties and has made an investment in the other Contracting Party's
territory;
(ii) any juridical person, organization or association with or
without legal personality, constituted in accordance with the legislation
of one of the Contracting Parties, having its seat in the territory of
this Contracting Party and having made an investment in the other
Contracting Party's territory;
(c) the term "returns" means the amounts yielded by an investment,
including profits, dividends, interests, royalties and other forms of
income.
Article 2
Each Contracting Party shall encourage investors of the other
Contracting Party to invest in its territory, and admit such investments
in accordance with its laws and regulations.
Article 3
1. Investments and activities associated with investments of
investors of either Contracting Party shall be accorded equitable
treatment and shall enjoy protection in the territory of the other
Contracting Party.
2. The treatment and protection referred to in Paragraph 1 of this
Article shall not be less favourable than that accorded to investments and
activities associated with investments of investors of any third State.
3. The provisions of this Agreement relative to the grant of
treatment of the investors of the other Contracting Party no less
favourable than that accorded to the investors of any third state, shall
not be construed as to oblige one Contracting Party to extend to the
investors of the other Contracting Party benefit of any treatment,
preference or privilege resulting from any customs union, free trade zone,
economic union, organization of mutual economic assistance, any
international agreement, arrangement or domestic legislation regarding
taxation, any regulation to facilitate the frontier trade.
Article 4
1. Either Contracting Party may for security reasons or a public
purpose, nationalize, expropriate or take similar measures (hereinafter
referred to as "expropriatory measures") against investments investors of
the other Contracting Party in its territory. Such expropriatory measures
shall be non-discriminatory and shall be taken under due process of
national law and against compensation.
2. The compensation mentioned in Paragraph 1 of this Article shall be
equivalent to the value of the expropriated investment assets at the time
when expropriation is proclaimed, shall be convertible and freely
transferable. The compensation shall be paid without unreasonable delay.
3. If an investor considers the expropriation mentioned in Paragraph
1 of this Article incompatible with the laws of the Contracting Party
taking the expropriatory measures, the competent court of the Contracting
Party taking the expropriatory measures may, upon the request of the
investor, review the said expropriation.
4. Investors of one Contracting Party who suffer losses in respect of
their investments in the territory of the other Contracting Party owing to
war, a state of national emergency, insurrection, riot or other similar
events, shall be accorded by the latter Contracting Party, if it takes
relevant measures, treatment no less favourable than that accorded to
investors of a third State.
Article 5
1. Each Contracting Party, within the framework permitted by its laws
and regulation, guarantees to investors of the other Contracting Party
transfer of payments in connection with investments made in its territory,
in particular of:
(a) profits, dividends, interests and other forms of income;
(b) amounts from liquidation of investments;
(c) repayments made pursuant to a loan agreement in connection with
investments;
(d) licence fees in item (iv) of (a) in Article 1.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph 1 of this Article each
Contracting Party guarantees to investors of the other Contracting Party
free transfer of investments made in convertible currency and returns in
convertible currency due to them in connection with their investments held
in its territory.
Article 6
The transfer mentioned in Article 4 and 5 of this Agreement shall be
made at the official exchange rate of the Contracting Party accepting
investment on the date of transfer.
Article 7
If either Contracting Party makes payment to any of its investors
under a guarantee it has assumed in respect of an investment in the
territory of the other Contracting Party, the latter Contracting Party
shall recognize the assignment of any right or claim from such investors
to the former Contracting Party. The former Contracting Party shall be
entitled to assert such right or claim to the same extent as its
predecessor in title, taking into account any right or counterclaim of the
latter Contracting Party.
Article 8
This Agreement shall apply to investments which are made prior to or
after its entry into force by investors of either Contracting Party in
accordance with the laws and regulations of other Contracting Party in the
territory of the latter one.
Article 9
1. Disputes between the Contracting Parties concerning the
interpretation or application of this Agreement shall, as far as possible,
be settled by consultation through the diplomatic channel.
2. If a dispute cannot thus be settled within six months, it shall,
upon the request of either Contracting Party, be submitted to an ad hoc
arbitral tribunal.
3. Such ad hoc tribunal comprises of three arbitrators. Within two
months from the date on which either Contracting Party receives the
written notice requesting for arbitration from the other Contracting
Party, each Contracting Party shall appoint one arbitrator. Those two
arbitrators shall, within two months after their appointments, together
select a third arbitrator who is a national of a third State which has
diplomatic relations with both Contracting Parties. The third arbitrator
shall be appointed by the two Contracting Parties as Chairman of the
arbitral tribunal.
4. If the ad hoc arbitral tribunal has not been constituted within
four months from the date of the receipt of the written notice for
arbitration, either Contracting Party may, in the absence of any other
agreement, invite the President of the International Court of Justice to
make the necessary appointments. If the President is a national of either
Contracting Party or is otherwise prevented from discharging the said
function, the next most senior member of the International court of
Justice who is not a national of either Contracting Party shall be invited
to make the necessary appointment.
5. The ad hoc arbitral tribunal shall determine its own procedure.
The tribunal shall reach its award in accordance with the laws of the
Contracting Party accepting investment, the provisions of this Agreement
and the principles of international law recognized by both Contracting
Parties.
The tribunal shall reach its award by a majority of votes. Such award
shall be final and binding on both Contracting Parties. The ad hoc
arbitral tribunal shall, upon the request of either Contracting Party,
explain the basis of its award.
6. Each Contracting Party shall bear the cost of its appointed
arbitrator. The relevant costs of the Chairman and the ad hoc tribunal
shall be borne in equal parts by the Contracting Parties.
Article 10
1. If an investor challenges the amount of compensation for the
expropriated investment assets, he may file complaint with the competent
authority of the Contracting Party taking the expropriatory measures. If
it is not solved within one year after the complaint is filed, the
competent court of the Contracting Party taking the expropriatory measures
or an ad hoc international arbitral tribunal shall, upon the request of
the investor, review the amount of compensation.
2. Such international arbitral tribunal shall be constituted case by
case as follows: each side shall appoint one member and these two members
shall agree upon a national as their Chairman, of a third State which has
diplomatic relations with both Contracting Parties. Such members shall be
appointed within two months from the date the investor informed the other
Contracting Party that it intends to submit the dispute to an arbitral
tribunal, and such Chairman shall be appointed within two further months.
If the periods specified in the above paragraph have not been observed,
either side may in absence of any other relevant arrangement invite the
president of the International Court of Justice to make the necessary
appointments. The arbitral tribunal shall establish its rules of
procedure.
3. The decision shall be final and binding on both sides.
4. Each side shall bear the costs of its own member in the
arbitration proceedings, the costs of the chairman shall be borne in equal
parts by both sides.
Article 11
1. This Agreement shall enter into force thirty days after the date
on which both Contracting Parties have notified each other that they have
fulfilled their respective internal legal procedures, and shall remain in
force for a period of ten years.
2. This Agreement shall continue in force if either Contracting Party
fails to give a written notice to the other Contracting Party to terminate
it one year before the expiration specified in Paragraph 1 of this
Article.
3. After the expiration of the ten year period, either Contracting
Party may at any time terminate this Agreement by giving at least one
year's written notice to the other Contracting Party.
4. With respect to investments made prior to the date of termination
of this Agreement, the provisions of Article 1 to 10 shall continue to be
effective for a further period of ten years from such date of termination.
In witness whereof, the duly authorized representatives of their
respective Governments have signed this Agreement.
Done at Beijing on June 7, 1988, in two original copies, each in the
Polish, Chinese and English languages, all texts being equally authentic.
In case of differences of interpretation, the text in the English language
shall be considered as the text of reference.
(Waing Ping qing) (Floeth)
For the Government of For the Government
the People's Republic the Polish People's
of China Republic
|
