António Costa and Ursula von der Leyen
The statement from Brussels was brief: “The European Commission takes note of the results of the referendum in Iceland. The Commission respects the choice of the Icelandic people. Iceland remains a close partner of the European Union.”
European Council President António Costa exchanged messages with Icelandic Prime Minister Kristún Frostadóttir (a proponent of integration), during which, as quoted by Euronews, “both leaders expressed a desire to continue strengthening relations between the EU and Iceland.”
Earlier, Frostadottir had stated that she would completely remove the issue of EU membership from the agenda for the remainder of her term if voters rejected the proposal. Nevertheless, she emphasized that “47% of the population was in favor” of joining the EU, and that this position should be respected just as much as the victory of those opposed to European integration.
Top-Tier Candidate
Officials and diplomats in Brussels viewed Iceland as a top-tier candidate. The country would almost certainly have been among the favorites, given its high level of integration with the bloc.
In the run-up to the vote, the commission responsible for the accession process made it clear that it intended to work with Iceland to find unconventional solutions to the two most contentious issues: fisheries and agriculture.
Although Iceland enjoys broad access to the single market, this arrangement does not extend to the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
During the negotiations, which took place from 2009 to 2013, these issues were largely not even addressed.
It remains unclear how significant the impact of the Icelandic referendum will be on the EU’s enlargement agenda, which—after many years of stagnation—has once again come to the forefront of the political agenda against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Montenegro is currently considered the frontrunner in the process, having provisionally closed 18 of the 33 negotiation chapters. The country hopes to become the 28th member state in 2028, and this goal forms the basis of the “28 by the 28th” slogan.
Despite Brussels’ reluctance to commit to artificial deadlines, officials there recognize how important it is to fulfill the promise of enlargement before the candidate countries’ patience runs out. Prior to the Icelandic referendum, there was even consideration of bundling the accession of Montenegro and Iceland into a single package.
