What is it about?
The issue of the EU’s performance in the “wider Eastern Europe” remains poignant, not least because of current developments in its “neighbourhood” (such as the crisis in Ukraine or Moldova’s downturn from success story to a captured state), the uneven pattern of reform across some of the recently admitted states (such as the turmoil in Hungary and Poland or the ongoing monitoring of Bulgaria and Romania in the area of rule of law), and the evident slow pace of progress and even back-sliding in parts of the Western Balkans (e.g. Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia). These cases, inter alia, illustrate that the EU’s performance in the area is neither linear nor uncontested. Thus, questions regarding EU performance reoccur frequently and very often, its “transformative power” can be called into question. Hence this article addresses the following questions: What determines EU performance in Central and Eastern Europe and in its Neighbourhood? What are the conditions that influence it?
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Why is it important?
This introductory article unpacks the notion of performance and proposes three modes of operationalization of performance. One of the key contributions of this Special Issues is that it systematically examines the performance of EU policies and processes as well as their impact in the ‘wider’ Eastern Europe. This introductory piece introduces a working definition of ‘performance’, highlighting the distinction between ‘process-driven’ (i.e. internal to the EU) and ‘outcome-driven’ performance (i.e. the EU’s impact on the ground). Subsequently, we identify a number of common themes related to EU performance that have guided individual contributions and ensured an overall level of coherence for the arguments advanced in this Special Issue.
Perspectives
The goal of this Special Issue is to examine the performance of EU policies and processes as well as their impact in the ‘wider’ Eastern Europe. We make both a conceptual and an empirical contribution. Conceptually, we link the literature on EU policy and its impact in ‘wider’ Eastern Europe with the literature on performance and distinguish between process-driven and outcome-driven performance of the EU. Under process-driven performance we evaluate the nature of the capabilities and the mechanisms and procedures used by the European Union in order to pursue its stated objectives. Subsequently, under outcome-driven performance we examined whether or not EU goals or objectives have been achieved on the basis of the effects these have. Drawing on insights from enlargement, post-enlargement and ENP partner countries, the empirical contributions to this volume examine both the process-driven and outcome-driven performance of the EU.
Dr Dorina Baltag
Loughborough University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Assessing the performance of the European Union in Central and Eastern Europe and in its neighbourhood, East European Politics, January 2017, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1080/21599165.2017.1279608.
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