Europeanization of CEE executives: EU membership negotiations as a shaping power

Abstract This article examines the impact of European integration on the central executives, i.e. the central government and the ministerial bureaucracy, of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia (CEEC-5) by distinguishing five stages of 'Europeanization'. The EU pressures candidates to reform their national administrations in anticipation of membership. These pressures are not uniform, but involve different 'mechanisms of Europeanization' and modes of governance. National reactions and solutions do not converge, not least because there is no single model of national administration in the EU itself. Moreover, the EU does not offer a precise administrative target zone for the adaptation process. In the current membership negotiations, the central executives of the CEEC-5 play a dominant role. This could reinforce a trend towards the strengthening of officials at the expense of other political actors in the EU policy cycle after accession. Anticipated EU membership is a driving force for administrative reform, but the candidate countries still need medium-term strategies for developing into efficient multi-level players in the European policy-making process. Keywords: Accession NegotiationsCentral And Eastern EuropeEu MembershipEuropeanizationPublic AdministrationTransformation