Bilateral investment treaties

There was a massive proliferation of bilateral investment treaties in the 1990s. A World Bank study stated that in 1994 there were over 700 such treaties. By the end of the millennium, the figure had moved towards 2,000 treaties. It has now exceeded that mark. Many more are in the process of being negotiated. Obviously, states which participate in the making of these treaties consider them to be necessary for a variety of reasons. Their significance needs assessment. Despite the increase in the number of bilateral investment treaties, there is as yet no possibility of agreeing a multilateral agreement on investment. The reasons for this also need to be explored.