ICELAND HAS denied the country is on an EU accession “fast-track” after the ruling Independence Party announced it would re-examine its traditional opposition to membership.
The speculation came as Reykjavik cleared the final hurdle to $5 billion emergency funding by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by agreeing to repay international savers with money in frozen Icelandic bank accounts.
Iceland’s prime minister Geir Haarde, chairman of the right-wing Independence Party, announced that, with the country still gripped by financial crisis, his party was bringing forward its party conference from October to January. Before then, a party committee is to examine the issue of EU membership.
“The government of Iceland has not changed its position yet – one of the governmental parties has decided to set up a committee to look into the EU matter. That’s quite a difference,” said Urdur Gunnarsdottir, spokeswoman for the foreign ministry.
Iceland’s ruling coalition is divided on the issue: the junior partner, Social Democrats, is in favour while the Independence Party has pro- and anti-EU wings.
It has benefited from traditional suspicion towards the EU in Iceland, in particular its fear that membership would mean the end of the island nation’s plentiful fish stocks. But the financial crisis gripping the island has seen support for EU membership rise to more than 70 per cent in one opinion poll. The polls show significant drops in popular support for the Independence Party, putting pressure on Mr Haarde to act, thus the January conference and the committee.
As a member of the European Economic Area (EEA), Iceland has already implemented about two-thirds of EU rules and regulations, prompting some to speculate on a fast-track process allowing accession by 2011.
EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn has declined to speculate on a possible timetable for Iceland’s membership before a formal application is made.
“But I would expect that accession negotiations can progress clearly much faster than with other countries that do not have such strong ties with the EU,” Mr Rehn told an Icelandic newspaper.
Meanwhile the IMF is expected to sign off on a $5 billion loan to Iceland at its board meeting tomorrow.
Britain had declined to support the plan because Iceland refused to guarantee £4 billion sterling of deposits in Icelandic banks.
Yesterday Reykjavik confirmed a deal had been reached. “It should mean that people will get their money back, how much I can’t tell you now,” the spokeswoman said.
Editorial comment: page 15; Iceland to receive $5bn from IMF loan scheme: page 20