Interviews on Poland’s influence in the European Union, 2007-2010

Transcripts from interviews carried out in Brussels and Warsaw between 2007 and 2010, to investigate the impact of a new Member State on the making of policy towards the EU’s eastern neighbours, using Poland as a case study. The project began with an investigation of Poland’s policy preferences in the field of the EU’s policy towards its eastern neighbours, asking specifically: (1) What are Poland’s policy preferences in the field of the EU’s relations with its eastern neighbours, and how many of these objectives has it achieved? (2) How are these preferences formed? (3) How successful has the Polish government been in achieving its policy objectives and why?

The research found that Poland's positive influence on the making of the EU's policy towards its eastern neighbours was low in the first period of membership (2004–07), however, between 2007 and 2009, the Polish government significantly increased its level of influence, most demonstrably through the launch of the Eastern Partnership initiative together with Sweden. This improvement was the direct result of a considerable amount of policy learning and adaptation to the rules of the Brussels game on the part of Polish officials and politicians. Nonetheless, the project also found that considerable weaknesses in administrative capacity and policy coordination remain.
<p>Whether the European Union will 'widen' or 'deepen' over the next 10 to 15 years is a question of vital significance to scholars and practitioners working on European integration.

This project focuses on two under-researched issues that stand out as particularly important to determining the future direction of the EU.

First, will the EU be 'wider', specifically what kind of relationship will the EU have with its eastern neighbours: Russia, Ukraine and Belarus - what could be called 'EU Eastern Policy'.

Second, will the EU be 'deeper', that is how will the relationship between the EU and its Member States evolve in the medium to long term.

The proposed research aims to shed light on both of these crucial areas by looking at the impact of a new Member State on the making of policy towards the EU's eastern neighbours. It will explore the proposition that the enlargement of the EU has had a profound effect on the EU's relations with its new neighbours. The case of Poland has been chosen since of all the new Member States, it has the greatest ambitions in shaping policy towards the Union's eastern neighbours.</p>