BONDS OF STEEL OR BONDS OF STRAW? INTERNATIONAL TREATIES AND ANTICORRUPTION POLICY IN SLOVAKIA

The paper is a case study of influence of international organizations on national/domestic policies. It analyses effect of major anti-corruption conventions of three organizations – OECD, Council of Europe and UN – on domestic policy in Slovakia to see whether these conventions matter for what actually happens in domestic policy. More broadly, it also looks at whether the current political science and sociological perspectives, with their dichotomy of external incentives and social learning, are appropriate for understanding the mechanisms through which such conventions operate. The conclusion is that, for domestic policymakers, international anticorruption conventions are not inherently either bonds of steel or bonds of straw. The external commitment would be used by domestic champions, but is not necessarily sufficient to override the domestic opposition.