The modern tendency to restrict international arbitration to matters of commerce and investment is succumbing to a renewed recognition of the original impetus for dispute resolution by arbitration - i.e., matters of public international law, most importantly the settlement of disputes that pose a threat of international conflict. Recent developments suggest a renaissance of public international arbitration, most clearly manifested in the present flourishing of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), the oldest existing dispute settlement institution in international law.