Why does the European Union negotiate (part of) its external negotiations in secret? To what extent is secrecy necessary in the context of EU negotiations and what are the consequences in terms of democratic accountability? This workshop aims to advance the understanding of the ‘necessity’ of secrecy for attaining candour and efficiency in negotiations as well as the arising consequences of the alleged trade-off between democratic accountability and efficiency. Secrecy in negotiations is said to be important due to the so-called ‘limit position’ of the negotiators, which is concealed, and the protected space that secrecy offers from external pressures and opinions in order for negotiators to discuss in candour. In turn, such aspects of secrecy are defended as necessary for the overall efficiency of negotiations. The workshop aims to offer a needed theoretical clarity on the challenges that arise due to the conflict between on the one hand, secrecy as necessary for negotiations, and on the other hand, openness as necessary for public debate of issues being negotiated.