As intervention in private legal relations, economic sanctions have led to a large number of international commercial disputes. Economic sanctions also pose a challenge to the arbitrability of such disputes, resulting in significant divergence of views among states as to the arbitrability of international commercial disputes involving economic sanctions. The prevailing view is that a dispute will not become inarbitrable because it involves the application of economic sanctions norms. A few countries, such as Italy, take the opposite view, arguing that economic sanctions will result in the parties’ inability to freely dispose of their contractual rights, thereby rendering such disputes inarbitrable. The divergence stems from different criteria for arbitrability adopted by states and the arbitrability of disputes involving mandatory rules under such criteria. Given that economic sanction norms fall within the category of mandatory rules, the divergence also extends to the arbitrability of international commercial disputes involving economic sanctions. In light of the provisions concerning arbitrability and the notion of encouraging and supporting arbitration of China, it is recommended to be prudent to deny the arbitrability of disputes due to the involvement of economic sanctions.