Iceland rejects EU

REYKJAVÍK – Iceland looks set to reject the prospect of restarting talks to join the European Union, in a major setback for Brussels’ dreams of expanding the bloc.

Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir, a social democrat leading a coalition, argued that her Nordic nation should have the opportunity to see the terms of joining the EU, and had promised another referendum on any decision to join in future. ‘Yes’ campaigners made an economic case, saying joining the euro would bring down record high inflation.

But the ‘no’ campaign appeared to convince more voters by hammering home what joining the 27-nation bloc could mean for national sovereignty, business and the prized fishing sector.

The final official results are not yet in. However, with five of the six constituencies having returned preliminary numbers, Icelandic media is calling it for ‘no.’ 52.5% voted ‘no,’ whereas 47.5% voted ‘yes,’ according to RÚV, the national broadcaster.

The result will dent the momentum in Brussels about enlarging the bloc, which has not grown since Croatia joined in 2013. Leaders are expected to define the contours of the next expansion at a leaders’ summit in Brussels in October, where they will grapple with vexed questions such as the impact on the strained EU budget, and how to avert democratic backsliding by new members.

The EU was hoping to pair the entry of Iceland – a rich island with the highest wages in Europe that is already largely integrated with EU laws – with that of a poorer country such as Montenegro, potentially making enlargement more palatable to sceptical governments.

“There is no reason for Brussels to take it in a negative way,” said Bjarni Benediktsson a former prime minister and currently CEO of the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise. “It is just a vote on whether we want to grow closer at this point in time.

“We are still a member of the European family,” he said.

“Now, we can start focusing on the difficulties that we have,” said Arnar Kristjánsson, a fisherman from Grundarfjörður on the west coast. “The government can focus on what it was elected to do.”

Euroscepticism bridged geographical and demographic divides on the volcanic island.

Þórdís, a ceramist running an arts and crafts shop in Reykjavík, said she and her family, many well-educated based around the capital, had all voted no.

Brussels spurned 

The EU establishment has been wooing the Nordic nation, in hopes that voters would see the benefits of joining.

Ursula von der Leyen traveled to Iceland last summer to discuss a security and defence partnership, and has welcomed Frostadóttir in Brussels.

There were even rumours that the Commission president would stop off in Iceland next week, if the result swung in the EU’s favour.

The EU’s enlargement chief, Marta Kos, said just days before the referendum that Iceland could conclude talks in as little as a year.

Iceland is a founding member of NATO, and a member of the European Economic Area, meaning it has access to the EU’s single market without being able to shape its laws. It applied for EU membership in 2009, but withdrew its application in 2013.

The pro-EU camp’s lead slowly disintegrated in the weeks before the referendum, before a poll last Thursday showed the ‘no’ side in the lead.

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