Iceland votes on whether to reopen European Union accession talks
Voters in Iceland are deciding whether to restart EU membership negotiations after years of delay, with the fishing industry central to the debate.
Icelanders went to the polls on Saturday in a close referendum on whether the country should resume talks about joining the European Union. The vote comes more than a decade after accession negotiations were put on hold and follows renewed concern over security and economic pressures.
The campaign has centred less on broad foreign policy questions than on the possible impact of EU membership on Iceland’s fishing sector, which remains one of the country’s most important industries. Supporters and opponents have argued over how much control Reykjavik would keep over access to waters and quotas.
The ballot was brought forward amid a period of unsettled international affairs, according to the BBC and Al Jazeera. Both outlets described the contest as finely balanced as voters weighed the costs and benefits of reopening the process.
Iceland last paused its EU accession effort more than 10 years ago, and any move to restart negotiations would begin a new phase in a long-running national debate over sovereignty, trade and security.
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