CELIS Blog

The CELIS Blog: Fueling the Conversation on Economic Security. The CELIS Blog is a unique forum for current debates on international investment control and economic security law and practice more broadly. It brings the latest developments and analysis to you. From economic security (law) experts – to economic security (law) experts.

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CELIS–Arnold & Porter Blog Series on Investment Security x Investment Arbitration

Introducing the CELIS–Arnold & Porter Initiative on Investment Security x Investment Arbitration

Authors: Steffen Hindelang (Uppsala University; CELIS Institute), Helene Schramm (CELIS Institute) and Liam McGrath (CELIS Institute) Most international rules governing foreign investment still breathe the air of the liberal, if ...
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Constraints on the State’s Right to Screen Foreign Investments Prior to Market Entry

Authors: Steffen Hindelang (Uppsala University; CELIS Institute), Helene Schramm (CELIS Institute) and Liam McGrath (CELIS Institute)    Introduction  As a starting point, a State enjoys broad authority to regulate the admission of foreign investment ...
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Post-Establishment Phase: FDI Screening Decisions and the Treatment of Retroactive Measures in Investment Arbitration

Authors: Bart Wasiak (Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer (UK) LLP) and Naina Gupta (Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer (UK) LLP)    Introduction  Decisions concerning the screening of foreign direct investments (“FDI”) are often taken at the post-establishment phase—after ...
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Shielding Foreign Investment Screening from Challenge under Investment Treaties

Author: Dr. Joshua Paine (University of Bristol)    Introduction  This post considers how States can design international investment agreements (“IIAs”) to prevent foreign investment screening measures from being subject to successful ...
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CELIS Special Blog Series on the Revision of the FDI Screening Regulation

Introducing: The Foreign (Direct) Investment Screening Regulation – A blog series on the revision of FDI Screening Regulation 2019/452

Part I in the CELIS Blog Series on the Revision of the FDI Screening Regulation. Autors: Lena Hornkohl (University of Vienna)[1], Andrew Hill (AmCham EU, Brussels), Floor Doppen (University of ...
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Tug-of-War? Determining the mandatory scope for the new FDI Screening Regulation

Part 2 in the CELIS blogseries on the revision of FDI Screening Regulation 2019/452. Authors:  Andrew Hill (AmCham EU, Brussels), Floor Doppen (University of Antwerp), Leonard von Rummel (Partner, Blomstein) ...
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To Screen or not to Screen? Defining the Deals that Count

Part 3 in the CELIS blogseries on the revision of FDI Screening Regulation 2019/452. Authors:  Andrew Hill (AmCham EU, Brussels), Floor Doppen (University of Antwerp), Kaarli Eichhorn (Antitrust Partner, Jones ...
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The Devil is in the Details – The Real Screening Report

Part 4 in the CELIS blogseries on the revision of FDI Screening Regulation 2019/452. Authors: Floor Doppen (University of Antwerp), Andrew Hill (AmCham EU, Brussels) Introduction The Commission published its 5th ...
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The Elephant in the Room: Subsidiarity in Investment Screening in the EU

Part 5 in the CELIS blogseries on the revision of FDI Screening Regulation 2019/45 Authors: Andrew Hill (AmCham EU[1]), and Floor Doppen (University of Antwerp) Introduction White smoke poured over ...
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Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, What’s the Outcome of the Trilogue?

Part 6 in the CELIS blogseries on the revision of FDI Screening Regulation 2019/45 Authors: Andrew Hill (Amcham Europe), and Floor Doppen (University of Antwerp) Introduction The clock has started ...
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CELIS–L&G Blog Series

Introducing: the CELIS-L&G Blogseries

Welcome, readers, to the inaugural blog post of a new collaboration between the academic journal Law & Geoeconomics (L&G) and the CELIS Institute. To set the tone, we decided to ...
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Proxies, Partners, or Opponents? Rethinking Business–Government Relations in Geoeconomic Competition

Authors: Olivier Schmitt (Royal Danish Defence College), Anna Vlasiuk Nibe (University of Southern Denmark) All articles in Law & Geoeconomics are available free of charge via Brill using the access token LGEO4U until 31 ...
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Why Economic Security Depends on Bureaucracy: The Hidden Side of Derisking

Authors:  M. Di Giulio (Associate Professor, Università di Genova), F. Baraldi (Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), and M. Sguazzini (Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Università di Genova) This blog is part ...
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Can – and should – the EU align with US economic security policy?

Varg Folkman (Policy Analyst, the European Policy Centre) Introduction Back during Europe's summer of discontent in 2025, it went somewhat overlooked -  amidst the larger trade story -  that the ...
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The State of Exception in EU Investment Law

Author: Jochem de Kok (Affiliate Fellow at the Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance of the University of Amsterdam and Senior Associate at A&O Shearma) This blog post is ...
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Regulating Critical Minerals and Economic Security in South America: Brazil, Chile, and Argentina in Comparative Perspective

Authors: Natália de Lima Figueiredo (Assistant Professor, Federal University of São Paolo) & Michelle Ratton Sanchez Badin (Associate Professor, FGV São Paulo School of Law) Introduction[1] "Economic security" has quickly ...
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The Small Yard Problem: How America and Japan De-Risk from China

Author: Timothy Cichanowicz (PhD Candidate, University of Kansas) This blog is part of the CELIS-L&G special series. All articles in Law & Geoeconomics are available free of charge via Brill using the ...
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Supply Chain Secondary Sanctions: How China Weaponised Lithuania’s Trade Links

Author: Verónica Fraile del Álamo (PhD Researcher, Australian National University) & Darren J. Lim (Senior Lecturer, Australian National University) This blog is part of the CELIS-L&G special series. All articles ...
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Latest Blog Posts

Shielding Foreign Investment Screening from Challenge under Investment Treaties

Author: Dr. Joshua Paine (University of Bristol)    Introduction  This post considers how States can design international investment agreements (“IIAs”) to prevent foreign investment screening measures from being subject to successful challenge under such treaties. It will demonstrate that there are a wide variety of strategies for insulating investment screening measures from successful challenge under an IIA. While some of these ...
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Supply Chain Secondary Sanctions: How China Weaponised Lithuania’s Trade Links

Author: Verónica Fraile del Álamo (PhD Researcher, Australian National University) & Darren J. Lim (Senior Lecturer, Australian National University) This blog is part of the CELIS-L&G special series. All articles in Law & Geoeconomics are available free of charge via Brill using the access token LGEO4U until 31 December 2026. More details are available at the L&G page here. Introduction The growing entanglement of economic ...
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Post-Establishment Phase: FDI Screening Decisions and the Treatment of Retroactive Measures in Investment Arbitration

Authors: Bart Wasiak (Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer (UK) LLP) and Naina Gupta (Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer (UK) LLP)    Introduction  Decisions concerning the screening of foreign direct investments (“FDI”) are often taken at the post-establishment phase—after the foreign investor already has made an investment in the host State—but may have an effect on the validity of the investor’s earlier acquisition or otherwise adversely impact its existing ...
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CELIS Update on Investment Screening and Economic Security – May 2026

Authors: Helene Schramm with the assistance of interns Reet Sodhi and Aditi Singh   INVESTMENT SCREENING MECHANISMS  Finland – Planned Revision of FDI Screening Regime to Address Emerging Security Risks  The foreign direct investment (“FDI”) screening framework in Finland is going through a major revamp to address the risks to national security, security of supply, and undue foreign influence, more efficiently.  The new FDI Act, which is expected to ...
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Constraints on the State’s Right to Screen Foreign Investments Prior to Market Entry

Authors: Steffen Hindelang (Uppsala University; CELIS Institute), Helene Schramm (CELIS Institute) and Liam McGrath (CELIS Institute)    Introduction  As a starting point, a State enjoys broad authority to regulate the admission of foreign investment into its territory, including by reviewing, conditioning, or prohibiting a contemplated transaction before it is implemented. This can be motivated by national security considerations or may follow an economic needs ...
Continue reading

Introducing the CELIS–Arnold & Porter Initiative on Investment Security x Investment Arbitration

Authors: Steffen Hindelang (Uppsala University; CELIS Institute), Helene Schramm (CELIS Institute) and Liam McGrath (CELIS Institute) Most international rules governing foreign investment still breathe the air of the liberal, if not neoliberal era in which they were created. They place particular emphasis on the promotion and protection of foreign-owned property and often enable foreign investors to enforce those rights with ...
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EU Law for EU Digital Sovereignty: Workshop Report (University of Antwerp, 20 March 2026)

Omid Jahanbozorgi and Ardit Maxhuni (Business and Law Research Group, University of Antwerp, Belgium)   Digital Sovereignty is an increasingly discussed topic in European policy circles. CELIS Blog will host several contributions on the topic in the following months. The following post provides a general introduction to the theme.   The Business and Law Research Group of the University of ...
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The Small Yard Problem: How America and Japan De-Risk from China

Author: Timothy Cichanowicz (PhD Candidate, University of Kansas) This blog is part of the CELIS-L&G special series. All articles in Law & Geoeconomics are available free of charge via Brill using the access token LGEO4U until 31 December 2026. More details are available at the L&G page here. Introduction China's rise and fears of weaponized interdependence are causing democracies to rethink the relationship between their ...
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Defence Tech, Venture Capital and Investment Screening: Germany’s Strategic Capital Dilemma

Authors: Jesper Spangenberg (Practice Lead Defence & Space, Werter GmbH) and Simon Sharghi-Erdmosa (Managing Programme Associate & Acting Head of Programmes and Partnerships, CELIS Institute) Introduction [1] The gradual erosion of the transatlantic relationship has prompted Brussels and European capitals to reassess the relationship between military and economic security. Historically, the two have always been closely intertwined, as industrial capacity, ...
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CELIS Update on Investment Screening and Economic Security – April 2026

Authors: Helene Schramm with the assistance of interns Reet Sodhi and Aditi Singh   INVESTMENT SCREENING MECHANISMS   Cyprus – Introduction of New FDI Screening Regime Under Law 194(I)/2025  Cyprus has introduced a new national framework for the screening of foreign direct investments (“FDI”) under Law 194(I)/2025 “On the Establishment of a Framework for the Screening of Foreign Direct Investments”, which entered into force on ...
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The CELIS Blog always welcomes posts from economic security professionals that address current issues in international investment screening and economic security law and practice. Would you like to contribute to the Blog? Please contact our editors: blog@celis.institute

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