ICELAND AND THE EU: ICELANDERS REJECT RENEWED MEMBERSHIP TALKS
Aktualizováno: 2. 9.
Iceland has made its decision. In a referendum on whether to reopen negotiations on joining the European Union, 53 percent of voters said “no”. 47 percent voted in favour. After years of uncertainty, the country has once again decided not to reopen an issue that divided Iceland more than a decade ago. The biggest concerns centred on fishing, national sovereignty and the fact that Iceland already enjoys many of the benefits of close ties with Europe without having to be an EU member.
On Saturday, August 29, Iceland once again went to the polls to decide its future relationship with Europe.
But this time, voters were not deciding directly whether Iceland should join the European Union.
The question came one step earlier: Should Iceland reopen negotiations on EU membership?
The answer is now clear.
No.
After all the votes were counted, approximately 53 percent of voters opposed reopening the negotiations, while 47 percent supported it. The result was far from certain beforehand. Just days before the referendum, opinion polls showed the two sides in a virtual dead heat.
More than 82 percent of eligible voters turned out, making it clear that Icelanders take the question of their country’s future in Europe very seriously.
This was not a vote on immediate EU membership
This is important.
Icelanders were not voting on whether their country should become a member of the European Union.
They were voting only on whether Iceland should reopen accession negotiations.
Had the “yes” side won, lengthy negotiations over the terms of membership would have followed. Only after those negotiations could Iceland have faced another decision on whether to actually join the EU.
So the “no” vote does not mean Iceland is ending its cooperation with Europe.
Quite the opposite.
Iceland remains part of the European Economic Area and the Schengen Area. Through the EEA, it has access to the European single market without being an EU member.
And this is one of the main arguments made by opponents of membership:
Why join the EU when we already have access to the European market while retaining the right to make our own decisions on issues that are crucial to Iceland?
Fish. Above all, fish.
If you ask why Icelanders rejected a return to the negotiating table, sooner or later you will come back to fish.
Fishing is not just another industry in Iceland.
It is part of the country’s history, economy and national identity.
According to Reuters, fishing accounts for approximately 15 percent of Iceland’s GDP and around 40 percent of its export revenues.
Icelanders are therefore highly sensitive to the possibility that joining the EU could mean losing some control over their own fishing resources.
The EU’s Common Fisheries Policy was one of the biggest concerns during the campaign.
Opponents argued that Iceland should retain the right to decide how much fish is caught in its waters, who can catch it and how the rules governing the domestic fishing industry are set.
And this is where Iceland’s history matters.
The dispute over fishing rights is not an abstract political issue for the country. Iceland fought several conflicts with Britain over fishing rights in the past – the famous Cod Wars.
Control over the sea has therefore long been associated in Iceland with the idea of national independence.
“We should decide what happens to our own fish”
This argument carried enormous weight during the campaign.
Opponents of EU membership argued that Iceland does not need to transfer any more decision-making powers to Brussels.
And it was not only about fishing.
Similar concerns were raised about agriculture. Icelandic farming operates under conditions that are highly specific compared with most of Europe. A short growing season, harsh climate and small domestic market, opponents argued, require Iceland to maintain its own rules and protect domestic producers.
The concern was simple:
What if rules designed for a much larger European market do not work for a small country in the middle of the North Atlantic?
Iceland is already, in a way, part of Europe
And this is where the whole issue becomes something of a paradox.
Iceland is not a European outsider.
It is a member of NATO.
It is part of the Schengen Area.
It belongs to the European Economic Area.
Its economy is closely integrated with Europe.
Icelanders can travel throughout much of Europe without border controls, while Icelandic companies have access to the European single market through the EEA.
Yet Iceland is not a member of the European Union.
And many Icelanders are perfectly comfortable with that arrangement.
They can trade with Europe, travel freely around Europe and cooperate with European countries while retaining control over areas they consider fundamental.
For opponents of EU membership, that is an ideal compromise.
So why did the EU question return in the first place?
Because the world has changed.
Iceland applied for EU membership in 2009, shortly after the country was hit by a severe financial crisis. Accession negotiations began in 2010 but gradually reached an impasse. In 2013, a new government halted the process, and in 2015 Iceland formally asked for the negotiations to be terminated.
For many years, it seemed that the EU question had been settled in Iceland.
Then the geopolitical situation changed.
Tensions are rising in the Arctic.
Russia is waging war against Ukraine.
The United States is changing its approach to Europe.
And statements by US President Donald Trump about Greenland also had a significant impact on the Icelandic debate.
Suddenly, the security of this small North Atlantic nation was being discussed in a completely different context than it had been ten years earlier.
Why did some Icelanders want to join the EU?
The arguments for a “yes” vote were significant.
Supporters argued that the EU could offer Iceland greater economic stability, particularly at a time of high prices, inflation and high interest rates.
They also pointed to the possibility of adopting the euro and abandoning the Icelandic króna, a small and relatively volatile currency.
Then there is security.
Iceland has no standing army of its own, and its defence relies primarily on NATO membership and cooperation with the United States.
At a time of growing geopolitical tensions, some Icelanders therefore saw closer European integration as another layer of security.
Supporters also argued that Iceland should have a direct seat at the table where rules affecting its economy are decided.
In other words:
If we already live partly by European rules, why shouldn't we have a say in making them?
Reykjavík said yes. The countryside largely said no.
The referendum result revealed another interesting divide.
A clear geographical line emerged between the capital and much of rural Iceland.
Both Reykjavík constituencies voted in favour. Reykjavík North voted approximately 57.5 percent yes, while Reykjavík South voted 54.5 percent yes.
In rural areas, however, opposition was much stronger.
In the Northwest constituency, approximately 62.9 percent voted against reopening the negotiations, while 61.2 percent did so in the Northeast. In the South constituency, the figure was as high as 60.5 percent.
It is not difficult to understand why.
In cities, the EU is often viewed primarily as an economic and political space.
In rural and fishing communities, the questions are much more immediate:
Who will decide what happens to our fish? Who will protect domestic agriculture? And how much power are we willing to hand over?
Iceland is not turning its back on Europe
The referendum result therefore cannot simply be interpreted as “Iceland does not want Europe”.
That would be far too simple.
Icelanders rejected the reopening of EU accession negotiations, not cooperation with the European Union.
The country remains closely connected to the European economy and European society. And for many Icelanders, the current arrangement – the European Economic Area, Schengen and the ability to make their own decisions in key areas – still offers considerable advantages.
Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir, who supported reopening the negotiations, accepted the result, and the government said it would respect the voters’ decision. For her government, however, the result is also a significant political defeat.
For the European Union, meanwhile, the result is another reminder that even in a time of geopolitical uncertainty, EU membership is not automatically seen as the best path for every European country.
Iceland has chosen its own path again
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the result is how close it was.
53 to 47.
This was not an overwhelming rejection.
Almost one in two voters wanted the negotiations reopened.
Iceland is therefore not a country turning away from Europe. It is a country that has decided that for now, it does not want to take the next step.
And the reasons are deeply Icelandic.
Fish.
The sea.
Its own rules.
A fear of losing control over what Icelanders consider theirs.
And the belief that a small nation in the middle of the North Atlantic can be part of Europe without becoming part of the European Union.
Iceland has once again said “no” to Brussels. Not because it wants to escape Europe, but because, for now, it wants to decide its own future.
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