ABSTRACT
This chapter presents interview-based evidence to show that officials in each country's foreign ministry express a kind of cautious optimism towards the European External Action Service (EEAS). The EEAS is viewed as a tool for uploading national foreign policy issues, a vehicle for tackling national priorities, and an intergovernmental platform for coordination. It examines that relationship in two European Union (EU) member states Sweden and Poland by studying changes to national policies, adjustments in national structures and working processes, shifting relationships between national and EU levels, and more general changes in perspectives and mindsets. The chapter reflects the growing Europeanization research agenda in EU studies. The chapter presents data gathered from a series of in-depth interviews with Polish and Swedish officials in their respective national capitals, along with secondary sources such as policy documents and strategy statements. A major issue for Sweden is the ongoing lack of foreign policy leadership and coherence, an issue the EEAS was supposed to fix.
