Strasbourg, 22/05/2013 (Agence Europe) - On 22 May, the two winning parties in Iceland's parliamentary elections on 27 April (see EUROPE 10837) - the Progressive Party and the Independence Party - announced their intention to organise a referendum before continuing accession negotiations with the EU. “We will not continue the accession negotiations with the European Union until a referendum has taken place”, they state. The new government said that it must assess the progress of the negotiations - which were started in July 2010 - and assess the practical arrangements for a referendum.
Peter Stano, the spokesperson for Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Füle, told EUROPE that the European Commission “takes note” of the approach announced by the new government regarding the accession process. “Once the new government and the minister of foreign affairs have come into office, the Commission is ready to discuss the concrete intentions and plans of the government in further detail”, Stano said, reiterating that the Commission is committed to further pursue the privileged cooperation with Iceland in all areas of mutual interest.
According to several polls, the people of Iceland are greatly opposed to their country joining the EU. The two parties that have recently come to power are against their country becoming a member of the EU.
The negotiations are progressing at a steady pace (27 negotiation chapters have been opened and 11 provisionally closed). However, some chapters - like those on fisheries and agriculture - which have still not been opened, are complicated. In particular, Iceland is engaged in a “mackerel war” with the 27 EU member states - with the EU accusing Iceland of overfishing this species. Reykjavik has a trade agreement with the EU, is a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), and is a member of the Schengen area. (CG/transl.fl)