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Law Approving The Agreement Between The Belgo-Luxembourg Economic Union And The Government Of The Republic Of Yemen Concerning The Encouragement And Reciprocal Protection Of Investments, Done At Brussels On 3 February 2000 (1) (2) (3).

Original Language Title: Loi portant assentiment à l'Accord entre l'Union économique belgo-luxembourgeoise et le Gouvernement de la République du Yemen concernant l'encouragement et la protection réciproques des investissements, fait à Bruxelles le 3 février 2000 (1) (2) (3)

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26 MAI 2002. - Act enacting the Agreement between the Belgian Economic Union and the Government of the Republic of Yemen concerning the mutual encouragement and protection of investments, done in Brussels on 3 February 2000 (1) (2) (3)



ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 77 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The Agreement between the Belgian Economic Union and the Government of the Republic of Yemen concerning the mutual encouragement and protection of investments, which was made in Brussels on 3 February 2000, will take effect.
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 26 May 2002.
ALBERT
By the King:
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
L. MICHEL
Minister, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Ms. A. NEYTS-UYTTEBROECK
Seal of the state seal:
Minister of Justice,
Mr. VERWILGHEN
____
Notes
(1) Session 2001-2002.
Senate.
Documents.
Bill tabled on 7 November 2001, No. 2-936/1.
Report on behalf of the Commission, No. 2-936/2.
Annales parliamentarians.
Discussion, meeting of 21 February 2002.
Vote, meeting of 21 February 2002.
Room
Documents
Project transmitted by the Senate, No. 50-1649/1.
Report on behalf of the Commission, No. 50-1649/2.
Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, No. 50-1649/3.
Annales parlementaire
Discussion, meeting of 27 March 2002.
Vote, meeting of 28 March 2002.
(2) See also the Decree of the Flemish Community/ Flemish Region of 18 July 2003 (Belgian Monitor of 25 August 2003), the Decree of the Walloon Region of 12 July 2001 (Belgian Monitor of 1ster August 2001 - Ed.2), the Brussels-Capital Region Order of 7 February 2002 (Belgian Monitor of 24 December 2002).
(3) This Agreement entered into force on 31 December 2003.

AGREEMENT TO THE BELGO-LUXEMBOURGEOISE ECONOMIC MEETING AND THE YEMEN REPUBLIC CONCERNING ENCOURAGEMENT AND THE RECIPROVESTMENT PROTECTION
The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium,
acting on behalf of both the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg,
under existing agreements,
the Walloon Government,
the Flemish Government,
and the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region,
on the one hand,
and
The Government of the Republic of Yemen,
on the other hand,
The following is referred to as the "Contracting Parties",
Desirous of strengthening their economic cooperation by creating favourable conditions for the realization of investments by nationals of one of the Contracting Parties in the territory of the other Contracting Party and recognizing that the mutual encouragement and protection of investments on the basis of the investment laws and regulations in force on the territory of each Contracting Party as well as on the basis of the provisions of this Agreement will have the effect of stimulating the investment initiatives, which favour the Contractors
The following agreed:
ARTICLE 1er
Definitions
For the purposes of this Agreement:
1. The term "investment" means any property or assets directly or indirectly invested or reinvested by an investor or investors of one of the Contracting Parties in the territory of the other Contracting Party in accordance with the laws and regulations of the other Contracting Party.
Without limiting the scope of the foregoing, are considered, in particular, but not exclusively, as investments:
(a) movable and immovable property and the rights associated with it, to the extent that they may be invested;
(b) shares, shareholders, equity holders or other receivables as well as public securities in general in relation to an investment;
(c) receivables and accrued interest with an economic value in relation to an investment and reinvested capital income and increments;
(d) copyrights, trademarks, patents, industrial designs and other intellectual or industrial property rights, know-how and business secrets, names filed and the trade fund in relation to an investment;
(e) any economic rights conferred under the law or arising out of a contract as well as any licence and franchise granted in accordance with the provisions in force and applicable to economic activities;
(f) any increase in the value of the original investment.
2. The term "investor" means any natural person or legal person constituted in accordance with the law of one of the Contracting Parties and who invests in the territory of the other Contracting Party.
3. The term "income" refers to amounts generated by an investment arising from an activity in the territory of the Contracting Party concerned, including profits, interests, capital increments, dividends, royalties or allowances.
4. (a) The term " territory " refers to the territory on which it exercises its sovereignty, including, in addition to the areas delimited by its land borders, the islands, the territorial sea, the exclusive economic zone and the continental shelf and other maritime zones on which it exercises its sovereignty and jurisdiction in accordance with international law.
(b) The term "territory" applies, for the Belgian Economic Union, to the territory of the Kingdom of Belgium and to the territory of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg as well as to the maritime zones, that is, the marine and submarine zones that extend beyond the territorial waters of the State concerned and on which it exercises, in accordance with international law, its sovereign rights and jurisdiction for the purposes of natural exploitation and conservation
ARTICLE 2
Promotion and protection of investments
1. Each Contracting Party shall encourage investors of the other Contracting Party to invest in its territory.
2. Each of the Contracting Parties shall at any time guarantee fair and equitable treatment for investments, direct or indirect, made by investors of the other Contracting Party and shall ensure that the management, maintenance, use, transformation, enjoyment or transfer of direct or indirect investments made in its territory by investors of the other Contracting Party, as well as companies and enterprises in which such investments have been made, shall not be in any way discriminatory
3. Each of the Contracting Parties shall establish a legal framework within its territory to ensure at all times the legal security of investors, including respect, in good faith, of all commitments made to each investor in accordance with its legislation.
4. No change in the legal form of investment will affect its investment qualification within the meaning of this Agreement.
ARTICLE 3
National treatment, most-favoured-nation clause
1. Each Contracting Party shall offer on its own territory investors and investments of the other Contracting Party full legal protection and fair treatment, which shall not be less favourable than those granted to its own investors or investors of a third State.
2. The provisions of subsection (1) of this Article shall not apply to the benefits and privileges that a Contracting Party may grant to investors of a third State, by virtue of its participation in an economic or customs union, a common market, a free trade zone, or any other form of regional economic organization or under agreements signed to avoid double taxation.
ARTICLE 4
Nationalization or expropriation
1. Investments will not be in law or in fact, either directly or indirectly, nationalized, expropriated, requisitioned or subjected to measures that have a full or partial effect on the territory of the other Contracting Party, unless it is imperatives of public utility or national interest, provided that these measures are provided with a fair and immediate compensation and are taken on a non-discriminatory basis and in accordance with all specific provisions and procedures,
2. The calculation of a fair compensation will be based on the actual commercial value before the nationalization or expropriation decision is made or made public.
3. Allowances will be considered immediate if they are paid without undue delay.
4. In the event of unwarranted delay, a new assessment will take place at the investor's request to correct the effects of the situation.
5. Any investor of one or the other Contracting Party who asserts that any or all of its investment has been expropriated shall have the right to be heard as soon as possible by the court or competent administrative authority of the Party in the territory of which the investment is located, so that the latter may determine whether the said expropriation has occurred, and if so is the case, if the said expropriation and the regulations so provided
6. If there is no agreement between the investor and the competent authority, the amount of compensation will be determined in accordance with the dispute settlement procedures in accordance with Article 8 of this Agreement. Compensation shall be freely transferable under Article 6 of this Agreement.
7. The provisions of paragraph 1er This section will also apply to benefits arising from an investment.
ARTICLE 5
Compensation for damage or loss
Investors of one of the Contracting Parties whose investments in the territory of the other Contracting Party would have suffered damage or loss due to a war or other form of armed conflict, a state of emergency, a civil conflict, a riot or other similar incident, will benefit, on the part of the Contracting Party in the territory of which the investments are located, from compensation of such damages or losses that would not be granted to the investor
ARTICLE 6
Capital, profit and income transfers
1. Each Contracting Party shall allow investors of the other Contracting Party to transfer to a foreign country, without undue delay and in convertible currency, all payments,
including:
(a) invested capital, including reinvested income to maintain and develop investment;
(b) Net income, dividends, royalties, amounts paid for technical assistance and services, interest and other benefits arising from the investment;
(c) the proceeds of the total or partial sale or total or partial liquidation of an investment;
(d) amounts intended for the settlement of contractual obligations, including amounts necessary for the reimbursement of borrowings in relation to an investment and the payment of related interest;
(e) compensation paid pursuant to sections (4) and (5) and amounts arising from the settlement of an investment dispute;
(f) compensation and compensation paid to nationals of the other Contracting Party in respect of work performed and services rendered in connection with an investment.
2. Without limiting the scope of Article 3 (2) of this Agreement, the guarantees referred to in Article 6 shall be at least equal to those granted to investors of the most favoured nation.
3. Nationals of each Contracting Party authorized to work for an investment in the territory of the other Contracting Party will also be allowed to transfer an appropriate quotity of their remuneration to their country of origin.
4. Transfers will be made in a freely convertible currency, in the course applicable to cash transactions in the currency used.
5. Each of the Contracting Parties shall issue the necessary authorizations to ensure without delay the execution of transfers, without any other charges than the usual fees and fees.
ARTICLE 7
Subrogation
1. If one of the Contracting Parties or an agency of the latter has covered by a guarantee the non-commercial risks associated with an investment made by one of its investors in the territory of the other Contracting Party and has paid to the investor compensation under that guarantee, the said Contracting Party or the agency concerned shall be authorized to exercise all the rights of that investor by subrogation.
2. The guarantor will not be allowed to exercise other rights than those that investors could have claimed.
3. Any dispute between the host country and the guarantor shall be settled in accordance with the provisions of Article (8) of this Agreement.
ARTICLE 8
Settlement of investor-contracting disputes
1. Any investment dispute that may arise between one of the Contracting Parties and the investor of the other Contracting Party, including disputes relating to the amount of compensation, shall be settled, if possible, to the amicable.
2. If the investor and a legally competent body of the other Contracting Party have entered into an investment agreement, the procedure provided for in that agreement shall be applied.
3. In the absence of amicable settlement within six months of the date of the written settlement application, the dispute shall be submitted, at the option of the investor concerned:
(a) the court of the host Contracting Party having territorial jurisdiction; or
(b) an ad hoc arbitration tribunal established under the arbitration rules of the host Contracting Party; or
(c) to an ad hoc arbitration tribunal established in accordance with the arbitration rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (C.N.U.D.C.I.); or
(d) the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (C.I.R.D.I.), which applies the Arbitration Rules and Procedures under the Washington Convention of 18 March 1965 for the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States.
4. To this end, each Contracting Party shall give its early and irrevocable consent to any dispute being submitted to that arbitration. This consent implies that they do not demand the exhaustion of domestic administrative or judicial remedies.
5. None of the Contracting Parties, a party to a dispute, shall raise any objection, at any stage of the arbitration proceedings or the execution of an arbitration award, as the investor, an opposing party to the dispute, would have received compensation covering all or part of its losses in the execution of an insurance policy or the guarantee provided for in Article 7 of this Agreement.
ARTICLE 9
Settlement of disputes between Contracting Parties
1. Any dispute relating to the interpretation or application of this Agreement that may arise between the Contracting Parties shall be settled, if possible, by negotiation.
2. If the dispute cannot be settled within six months of the date on which one of the Contracting Parties has sent to the other Contracting Party a written request for negotiation, the latter shall, at the request of either Contracting Party, be submitted to an ad hoc arbitral tribunal pursuant to this Article.
3. The arbitration tribunal shall consist of three arbitrators. Each Contracting Party shall designate an arbitrator within two months of the date on which the request for arbitration has been notified. Within two months, the two arbitrators shall designate the third arbitrator who shall serve as president of the court.
4. If the designations have not taken place within the period specified in paragraph (3) of this Article, one or the other Contracting Party may, in the absence of any other arrangement, invite the President of the International Court of Justice to make the appointments. If the President of the International Court of Justice is a national of one or the other Contracting Party, or if, for another reason, he or she is unable to make the appointments, that function shall be exercised by the Vice-President. If the Vice-President of the Court is a national of either Contracting Party or is unable to make appointments, the highest member in the International Court of Justice and who is not a national of either Contracting Party will be invited to make appointments.
5. The arbitration tribunal shall rule by a majority of votes and its decisions shall be binding. Each Contracting Party shall bear the fees and costs of its arbitrator and the costs of its representation in the arbitration proceedings. The President ' s fees and other disbursements shall be borne equally by the Contracting Parties.
6. The Arbitration Court will set its own procedural rules.
ARTICLE 10
Relations between Governments
The provisions of this Agreement shall apply, whether or not the Contracting Parties maintain diplomatic or consular relations.
ARTICLE 11
Application of other rules
1. When an issue is governed by both this Agreement and another international agreement signed by the two Contracting Parties, the most favourable provisions will apply to Contracting Parties and their investors.
2. If the treatment granted by one of the Contracting Parties to the investors of the other Contracting Party, in accordance with its laws and regulations or the provisions of a specific contract, investment authorization or agreement, is more favourable than that granted under this Agreement, the most favourable treatment will be applied in this specific case.
ARTICLE 12
Previous investments
This Agreement shall also apply to investments made prior to its entry into force by investors of one of the Contracting Parties in the territory of the other Contracting Party in accordance with the laws and regulations of the other Contracting Party, but it shall not apply to conflicts occurring prior to its entry into force.
ARTICLE 13
Entry into force
This Agreement shall enter into force on the date on which the two Contracting Parties shall notify each other that their respective constitutional procedures have been fulfilled.
ARTICLE 14
Duration and expiration
1. This Agreement shall remain in force for a period of ten years from the date of the notification provided for in Article 13 above and shall be automatically extended for a period of ten years, unless one of the Contracting Parties denounces it in writing at least one year before the expiry of its period of validity.
2. With respect to investments made prior to the expiry date of this Agreement, referred to in subsection (1) of this Article, the provisions of Articles 1er to 13 of this Agreement shall remain applicable to them for a further period of ten years from the date mentioned above.
In faith, the undersigned, duly authorized to do so by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.
Done in Brussels, on 3 February 2000, in two original copies, each in French, Dutch, English and Arabic, all texts being equally authentic. The English language text will prevail in the event of a discrepancy of interpretation.