This dissertation analyzes the proposal for the creation of a mechanism for restructuring sovereign debt of countries with unsustainable debt burdens, presented in the end of 2001 by Anne Krueger, deputy manager director of the International Monetary Fund. Using Friedrich Kratochwil´s rule-based constructivism as its theoretical framework, this dissertation intends to answer why the Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism (SDRM) was rejected by private creditors, by debtors such as Brazil and Mexico, and by the US government, even though it could, at least theoretically, contribute in the coordination of creditors and debtors, make restructuring processes quicker and orderly, reduce the risk of debt crises, and bring benefits and stability to the market and its participants. The review of the documents prepared by the defenders (especially those among the staff of the IMF) and the critics of the SDRM during the debate which ended with its formal rejection in the beginning of 2003, suggests that the reactions of private creditors and debtors can be attributed to deep-seated differences in the interpretation of the content and role of norms in the international capital market.