This is from the officially released CETA text (p. 184):
Annex X: Public Debt
1. No claim that a restructuring of debt issued by a Party breaches an obligation under Sections [Non-Discriminatory Treatment, Investment Protection] may be submitted to, or if already submitted continue in, arbitration under Section 6 [Investor-State Dispute Settlement] if the restructuring is a negotiated restructuring at the time of submission, or becomes a negotiated restructuring after such submission, except for a claim that the restructuring violates Article X.6 [National Treatment] or Article X.7 [Most-Favoured Nation].
2. Notwithstanding [ISDS: Article X.22 Submission of a Claim to Arbitration, para 4], and subject to paragraph 1 of this Annex, an investor of another Party may not submit a claim under Section 6 [Investor-State Dispute Settlement] that a restructuring of debt issued by a Party breaches an obligation under Sections [ Non-Discriminatory Treatment, Investment Protection] (other than Article X.6 [National Treatment] or Article X.7 [Most-Favoured Nation]) unless 270 days have elapsed from the date of receipt by the respondent of the written request for consultations pursuant to [Article X.18 Consultations].
3. For the purposes of this Annex, ‘negotiated restructuring’ means the restructuring or rescheduling of a debt instrument that has been effected through (i) a modification or amendment of such debt instrument, as provided for under its terms, or (ii) a comprehensive debt exchange or other similar process in which the holders of no less than 75 percent of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt under such debt instrument have consented to such debt exchange or other process.
This provision must be a response to the issues arising from the Argentina debt litigation going on right now, excluding most such claims in the CETA. Any thoughts? Is a provision along these lines a good way to deal with the issue? Will it spread to other investment chapters/treaties? Would the U.S. accept it in the TTIP?
Thanks to Harm Schepel for the tip.
ADDED: I did some quick searches, and it seems that this provision exists in other agreements in some form. So what exactly is the origin and purpose?
