Gold Reserve went for it, and it paid out Venezuela was under pressure to settle with Gold Reserve. International arbitration awards are enforceable under law, and if a government refuses to pay, a company can try to seize state-owned assets located outside the country. Gold Reserve was attempting to seize interest payments on Venezuelan debt last year, which were being routed through Luxembourg.
If Venezuela does not make its payments to Gold Reserve on time, the company can terminate the settlement agreement and try to enforce the arbitration award once again.
“Clearly, there is an element of this (settlement) which is a business transaction,” said Robert Wisner, a partner and international arbitration specialist at McMillan LLP.
“But there is obviously a part of it that was forced upon Venezuela by the fact that Gold Reserve had taken enforcement actions.”
https://business.financialpost.com/news/mining/gold-reserve-reaches-arbitration-settlement-with-venezuela-stock-soars