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Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

bbc.com

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Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#91

Post by Beretta_Vexee »

ekidd wrote: post #7

> The No campaign fears losing control over Iceland's prized fishing grounds under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy and has vowed never to share the country's waters with anyone. Brussels has indicated Iceland could earn some kind of exemption, but it is considered potentially the biggest obstacle to any agreement. As noted in the article, Iceland's fishing industry makes up something like 40% of their exports. Which…

One of the factors leading them to reconsider EU membership is monetary policy. The Icelandic króna is a very small currency that fluctuates considerably. Switching to the euro would protect them from exchange rate risks with their main trading partner.

One solution for Iceland would be to join the eurozone without becoming a member of the EU, as Kosovo and Montenegro have done. However, this would only be desirable if there really is a deadlock over fishing rights.

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#92

Post by Semaphor »

glimshe wrote: post #22
ekidd wrote: post #7

> The No campaign fears losing control over Iceland's prized fishing grounds under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy and has vowed never to share the country's waters with anyone. Brussels has indicated Iceland could earn some kind of exemption, but it is considered potentially the biggest obstacle to any agreement. As noted in the article, Iceland's fishing industry makes up something like 40% of their exports. Which…

They export good music too (Bjork and Sigur Ros)!

Including a very healthy metal scene, Martröð (50 % icelandic) and Nexion were recent favorites of mine.

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#93

Post by ajsnigrutin »

exceptione wrote: post #41
ktallett wrote: post #2

It's a hard one. I feel the UK were wrong to leave but Norway and Switzerland have a fantastic overall quality of life without and I'm not sure the benefits of membership unless you are financially poor country. Iceland is probably better off joining the Schengen but not EU.

In practice, these countries implement already a lot of EU law. It isn't that difficult for say a Switzerland to join the EU and they have good reasons to, as access to programs like Horizon is a huge benefit. The economies of these countries are quite interwoven with the second largest economy of the world. The EU market comes with rules but is is a very big win for neighboring countries. In fact, Switzerland backtr…

Why do they need the Horizon programs? Switzerland is a rich country, in any pan-EU project scheme, they'd pay more than they'd get back.

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#94

Post by theragra »

glimshe wrote: post #22
ekidd wrote: post #7

> The No campaign fears losing control over Iceland's prized fishing grounds under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy and has vowed never to share the country's waters with anyone. Brussels has indicated Iceland could earn some kind of exemption, but it is considered potentially the biggest obstacle to any agreement. As noted in the article, Iceland's fishing industry makes up something like 40% of their exports. Which…

They export good music too (Bjork and Sigur Ros)!

Meh, too pop. Hildur Guðnadóttir!

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#95

Post by coldtea »

mixdup wrote: post #85
coldtea wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because if the people don't want to join in the first place, why hold negotiations to begin with?

Polling would be good enough I would think here, do a poll and if you're within 10% of a majority being in favor, just do it and then let them decide on the final agreement. Be public with that stance so that the EU and the population know that the public will have the final say and we (the gov) aren't trying to railroad this Maybe in a country the size of Iceland it's not as big a deal to run an election but it seem…

It's not a big deal given the major decision regarding even considering losing most of their national soveregnity to one of the most incompetent bureucracies the world has ever seen for hardly any upsides that they can't negotiate individually as a sovereign country.

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#96

Post by broken-kebab »

snowpid wrote: post #57
mytailorisrich wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Despite what you might see a lot in the media lately the EU is not a military alliance and has explicitly no involvement in the military. So joining the EU is irrelevant on these issues. The article mentions that sovereignty is a big issue. It should be because joining the EU means giving that up so that, I think, is the really crucial issue they should be thinking long and hard about (including, indeed, with respect…

EU is indeed a military alliance. They are just no integrated command structures but this is common among most military alliances across the world. SAFE credits are an EU military thing.

The mutual assistance clause doesn't oblige member states to support each other with military force even in case of aggression. A member can send blankets, food rations, or even just express diplomatic solidarity. Stretching definitions enough one can call it military alliance, but it is not in any practical form.

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#98

Post by mixdup »

thih9 wrote: post #90
mixdup wrote: post #67

It seems odd to hold a referendum on holding talks. Why not just negotiate an agreement and then hold a referendum on that agreement?

I guess one does not “just negotiate an agreement” for something like this. And perhaps two referendums and working incrementally is wise in general, given the mess that was Brexit.

But that is quite literally what they are going to do. They're asking the public if they should try to join the EU. If yes, they will negotiate an agreement with the EU. Once the government has agreed a path forward with the EU, they'll then have another vote and if yes they'll actually sign the agreement and join the EU, if no, it ends there and they don't join

This first vote isn't committing the country or population to anything

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#99

Post by Y-bar »

lukan wrote: post #26
ekidd wrote: post #7

> The No campaign fears losing control over Iceland's prized fishing grounds under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy and has vowed never to share the country's waters with anyone. Brussels has indicated Iceland could earn some kind of exemption, but it is considered potentially the biggest obstacle to any agreement. As noted in the article, Iceland's fishing industry makes up something like 40% of their exports. Which…

Iceland doesn't even have a military at all.

They can easily implement a large no-fly zone across Europe, as demonstrated with Eyjafjallajökull in 2010.

Re: Iceland votes on whether to restart talks on joining EU

#100

Post by cyberpunk »

glimshe wrote: post #22
ekidd wrote: post #7

> The No campaign fears losing control over Iceland's prized fishing grounds under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy and has vowed never to share the country's waters with anyone. Brussels has indicated Iceland could earn some kind of exemption, but it is considered potentially the biggest obstacle to any agreement. As noted in the article, Iceland's fishing industry makes up something like 40% of their exports. Which…

They export good music too (Bjork and Sigur Ros)!

check out solstafir too!
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