Madrid & Barcelona Future of Europe Debates: European integration after European Parliament Elections

DigiDem-EU WP3: Democracy, Participation and Europeanisation

2024

June

10:00h

Assistance by invitation

Location:

CIDOB, Elisabets, 12, 08001 Barcelona

Organized by:

CIDOB, Global Policy Center (GPC), School of Politics, Economics and Global Affairs, IE University, and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Madrid (FES) with the support of the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) of the European Commission.

2024 is a turning point for Europe and the world. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has reshaped dynamics across the continent, triggering discussions on EU reform, enlargement, competitiveness, and its global role. With critical elections worldwide, including in the United States, India, Mexico, and South Africa, it's a crucial time for scholars and decision-makers to examine both the EU's internal affairs and its role in the international scenario.

FES, the Global Policy Center (IE) and CIDOB have partnered to organise the Madrid & Barcelona Future of Europe Debates, a series of closed-door roundtable discussions. The aim of the initiative is to analyse the main challenges of the EU and to reflect on how current geopolitical trends might impact the future of Europe in the crucial electoral year of 2024. CIDOB is hosting the roundtable discussion dedicated to the challenges emanating from the elections to the European Parliament.

The debate will consist of three panels focusing on different aspects of the elections. First, it will examine how citizens’ preferences will define the future of the EU and how could the new strategic agenda shape the course of European integration. Second, it will outline what is going to be the new institutional set up after the elections and whether and how the decision-making process of the Union may be impacted with the new composition of the Parliament. Third, it will reflect on the rise of the radical right in the European Parliament and what are the implications for the EU foreign policy.

Participants

Pol Morillas

Director

Luise Rürup

Representative, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Portugal & Spain (FES)

Ilke Toygür

Director, Global Policy Center (GPC) and Professor of Geopolitics of Europe, School of Politics, Economics & Global Affairs (SPEGA), IE University

Gaëtane Ricard-Nihoul

Deputy Head of Unit, Citizens’ Dialogue, European Commission

Raquel García

Analyst, Real Institute Elcano

Luise Quaritsch

Policy Fellow, Jacques Delors Centre

Melchior Szczepanik

Head of PISM Brussels Office, PISM

Nicolai von Ondarza

Head of Research Division EU/Europe, SWP

Maria Pallarés

Head of Programmes, FES

Zsuzsanna Szelényi

Director, CEU Democracy Institute Leadership Academy

Héctor Sánchez Margalef

Researcher

Agenda

10.00 – 10.30 Welcome and setting the framework

Pol Morillas, Director, CIDOB (Barcelona Centre for International Affairs)
Luise Rürup, Representative, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Portugal & Spain (FES)
Ilke Toygür, Director, Global Policy Center (GPC) and Professor of Geopolitics of Europe, School of Politics, Economics & Global Affairs (SPEGA), IE University

10.30 – 11.45 Do citizens preferences match with the electoral results? What have citizens voted for and what does it mean for the EU

Moderated by:
María Pallarés, Head of Programmes, FES
Gaëtane Ricard-Nihoul, Deputy Head of Unit, Citizens’ Dialogue, European Commission
Eleonora Poli, Head of Analysis, Centro Poltiche Europee

What were citizen’s preferences before the elections? How have citizens engaged in participation beyond the electoral contest? What are the issues that have been prominently featured during the electoral campaign? Have there been common themes across member states? Have these elections still been 27 different elections? Is there a role for citizens’ participation in this new political cycle?

11.45 – 12.15 Coffee break

12.15 – 13.30 Parliament configuration and potential shifts in the upcoming institutional cycle

Moderated by:
Raquel García, Analyst, Real Institute Elcano
Luise Quaritsch, Policy Fellow, Jacques Delors Centre
Melchior Szczepanik, Head of PISM Brussels Office, PISM

How will the election results affect the parliament’s configuration? Which policies can be decisive in the formation of unconventional coalitions? How can the new parliament configuration impact the continuity of the EU’s last institutional cycle? Which issues can be expected to come at the forefront of EU policy priorities?

13.30 – 14.30 Working lunch

14.30 – 15.45 Looking forward: The rise of the radical right in the European Parliament and the future of the EU’s foreign policy

Moderated by:
Ilke Toygür, Director, Global Policy Center (GPC) and Professor of Geopolitics of Europe, School of Politics, Economics & Global Affairs (SPEGA), IE University
Nicolai von Ondarza, Head of Research Division EU/Europe, SWP
Zsuzsanna Szelényi, Director, CEU Democracy Institute Leadership Academy

How will the June elections affect the future of the EU’s foreign and security policy? How will the election results (marked by an increased representation of the radical right) shape the EU’s perception of future geopolitical challenges and its responses to it?

15.45 – 16.00 Concluding remarks

Héctor Sánchez Margalef, Researcher, CIDOB (Barcelona Centre for International Affairs)

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