A/70/301 Perpetuation of international power imbalances 56. Investment and free trade regimes can increase inequality between different countries, as imbalances inherent within international power structures can influence the negotiation and enforcement of such mechanisms. As discussed above, international trade and investment regimes more acutely affect developing countries. The majority of international investment agreements are between developing and developed countries; most investor-State dispute settlement cases have been brought against less developed countries, while investors are commonly from developed States. 57. The international investment regime for the protection of the rights of foreign investors has led to many disputes between investors and host States. The decisions and the strong enforcement mechanisms of such regimes can have dire consequences for the realization of human rights generally and indigenous peoples ’ rights in particular. 58. Questions have also been raised about whether international power structures have influenced the outcome of investor-State dispute settlement tribunals given that developed countries seem to be better able to insulate themselves from their negative impacts. For example, the United States has never lost an investor -State dispute settlement case. It is unclear if that is because developed countrie s are more able to access resources to defend themselves against cases or if there is a systemic bias favouring the most economically and geopolitically powerful countries. 59. By perpetuating the international power imbalances in the international system, free trade and investment regimes compound the related inequality in the resources available to countries. That lack of resources consequently negatively affects the capacities of less developed countries to protect the most vulnerable, including indigenous peoples. Exclusive national economic growth 60. International investment and free trade can promote economic growth at the national level through the promotion of FDI and, it is hoped, by raising GDP. However, such economic growth is not often the type that facilitates poverty reduction amongst the most vulnerable citizens, including indigenous peoples. Rather, experience has shown that growth driven solely by trade liberalization, FDI, Government austerity and weak regulation exacerbates inequality and often comes at the cost of large-scale environmental destruction. Those negative secondary effects often undermine a broad range of indigenous peoples’ rights, such as land rights, the right to self-determination over development pathways and the rights to health, food and an adequate standard of housing. V. Key challenges and promising practices A. Challenges 61. There are a number of closely related and mutually reinforcing challenges to achieving effective reform of international investment and free trade agreements and related improvements in the promotion and protection of indigenous peoples ’ human rights. Those challenges are discussed in the section below. 18/24 15-12526