Brussels, 10/06/2010 (Agence Europe) - Following the COREPER meeting on Wednesday afternoon 9 June at which Iceland's request to join the EU was discussed, it seems very likely that the European Council next week (17 June) will give political approval for accession talks to begin in the near future. Noting the Commission's positive opinion on Iceland's application, member states' permanent representatives came out firmly in favour of opening negotiations with Reykjavik. It was only the UK and Dutch ambassadors who, to no one's surprise, expressed a reservation: the invitation to Iceland must stress its obligations to meet its commitments under the European Economic Area (EEA), in particular with regard to bank deposit guarantees. Both the UK and the Netherlands are still waiting for Iceland to agree to compensate British and Dutch savers who lost money when the IceSave bank went bankrupt. UK and Dutch concerns on this issue are unlikely to prevent the European Council of 17 June from approving the opening of talks with Iceland, diplomats say. Heads of state and government will most probably invite the Council of prepare a negotiating framework, though without giving any indication at this stage of the date on which accession talks will be opened. Once the framework is ready, the General Affairs Council will be empowered to decide on the exact date for the start of negotiations, probably sometime in the autumn. “That is indeed the scenario towards which we are heading,” European diplomats involved in preparing the European Council confirmed on Thursday. On Monday 7 June, when he spoke to permanent European Council President Herman Van Rompuy in London, newly elected UK Prime Minister David Cameron confirmed that he would not stand in the way of accession negotiations with Iceland so long as the Reykjavik government pledged to meet its obligations in the IceSave affair. The Dutch hold an identical position, no matter the outcome of the general elections of 9 June, Dutch sources said last week. (H.B./transl.rt)