Iceland's government rules out new EU accession talks after referendum rejection

STOCKHOLM, August 30. /TASS/. Iceland will not initiate new negotiations on accessing the European Union under the current government, Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir said.

Iceland held a referendum on resuming negotiations on accessing the European Union on Saturday. According to the latest updates cited by the RUV television company, 52% of voters opposed the idea, saying that this move will carry a risk of limiting Iceland’s sovereignty and imposing restrictions on fishing.

"I want to make it absolutely clear. This government is not going forward with the accession talks this term. It’s my point of view that you cannot have a referendum like this every one or two years. It’s a huge matter to do. I am not going to say that things might not change in the future, but our promise was to ask, get a result and respect it," she told a news conference after the voting.

She pledged that the country will remain a reliable partner within the European Economic Area, like Norway and Lichtenstein.

Iceland first applied for EU membership in 2009, but in 2013, a government skeptical of the EU halted the process. Reykjavik is already part of the Schengen Area and the European Economic Area (EEA).