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Multilateral institutions, accession conditionality and rule transfer in the European Union: the Energy Community in South East Europe

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2012

Stephen Padgett
Stephen Padgett*
Affiliation:
School of Government and Public Policy, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland
*
Stephen Padgett School of Government and Public Policy University of Strathclyde McCance Building 16 Richmond Street Glasgow G1 1XQ Tel.: 0141 357 3671 Fax: 0141 552 5677 Email: stephen.padgett@strath.ac.uk
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Abstract

Conditionality is widely used by international organisations to induce “client states” to engage in structural reform. In the European Union (EU) it plays an important role in ensuring that accession countries adopt EU rules as a condition of membership. Reliance on external incentives, however, limits the effectiveness of bilateral accession conditionality, especially for pre-accession countries with uncertain membership prospects. This article argues that multilateral institutions can boost the rule transfer effects of bilateral accession conditionality by reinforcing its incentive structure. The contention is tested by empirical research into the Energy Community in South East Europe. The research uses cross-national and cross-sectoral comparison to evaluate the rule transfer effects of Community institutions relative to accession conditionality and the terms of energy interdependence. It finds that whilst accession status is the main predictor of alignment with the energy acquis, there is evidence that multilateral institutions of the Energy Community exert a significant reinforcement effect.

Keywords

energyEnergy CommunityEuropean Unionmultilateral institutionsrule transfer
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Public Policy , Volume 32 , Issue 3 , December 2012 , pp. 261 - 282
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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