The Madrid Stakeholder Workshop, which took place on October 30, brought together a diverse group of experts, government officials and EU representatives from Spain, France, Germany and Italy. The ENGAGE panel was part of a High-Level Dialogue called “Building Europe with France, Germany and Italy”, which was organized by EsadeGeo, Agenda Pública, and the Jacques Delors Institute Notre Europe, in collaboration with the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

The objective of the ENGAGE panel was to discuss the recommendations presented in ENGAGE Policy Brief 2, "Making Faster and Better Decisions in EU Common Foreign and Security Policy". Professor Ramses A. Wessel from the University of Groningen presented options for implementing qualified majority voting (QMV) in the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and closely related policy areas. The presentation also examined vetoes or delays in CFSP decisions, and the possibilities offered by the treaties for the implementation of QMV. The discussion then focused on the feasibility of specific proposals, such as the “27 minus 2 or 3” formula proposed by HR/VP Josep Borrell.

Salvador Rueda Rabanal, Director General for Integration and Coordination of General Affairs of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, and José M. De Areilza, Professor and Jean Monnet Chair at Esade, participated in the discussions as first respondents. Further comments were offered by workshop participants, including Enrico Letta, President of the Delors Institute, Arancha González Laya, Dean of the Paris School of International Affairs at Sciences Po, Norbert Röttgen, Member of the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee (CDU), and Sylvie Kauffmann, Editorialist at Le Monde.