Iceland: Will a “Brexit moment” come soon?
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Iceland’s foreign minister has said she fears her country faces a “Brexit moment” in its looming EU referendum amid warnings over misinformation, foreign interference and AI.
With just over three months to go until Iceland votes on whether or not to continue accession talks with the EU, developments are being closely watched by Washington, Moscow and Brussels.
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir accused individuals and groups from inside and outside the country of “fearmongering”, saying Iceland was being hit with misinformation and rhetoric taken “from the playbook of Nigel Farage and Reform”.
She said the referendum was at risk of being a target for Russia and “actors who seek to influence our public debate in a negative way”. Foreign interference and the spread of misinformation could end up affecting the result, the minister warned.
“I am fearing that we will face a Brexit moment (...) That would be, from my point of view, a rather dangerous path because … there were all kinds of lies put forward by the Brexiteers.” She cited disputed figures used by the leave campaign over how much money the UK sent to the EU.
The Icelandic coalition government – formed of the left-leaning parties the Social Democratic Alliance and the People’s party, and Þorgerður’s centre-right pro-European Liberal Reform party – surprised many when it announced in March that it would hold the EU referendum on 29 August, having previously said it would do so no later than 2027.
The move was in part motivated by threats from the US, a longtime close ally of Iceland, to forcibly acquire its closest neighbour, Greenland.
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir said: “For us, from my point of view, the international order that underpinned our security and prosperity for decades is under serious pressure. The world has changed so decisively, I would say, so Greenland has of course affected, or had influence on, our decision.”
Old alliances were being tested, she said, and trade used as a “political weapon”. “You do not treat a friend and an ally like Greenland and Denmark like the US did in the beginning of this year.”
She insisted, however, that Iceland’s relationship with the US remained strong and that it was broadening its alliances.
“Iceland being a member of the EU is not contradicting all the good relationship with the US. One thing does not exclude the other thing.”
#island #brexit #katrín #gunnarsdóttir
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Iceland’s foreign minister has said she fears her country faces a “Brexit moment” in its looming EU referendum amid warnings over misinformation, foreign interference and AI.
With just over three months to go until Iceland votes on whether or not to continue accession talks with the EU, developments are being closely watched by Washington, Moscow and Brussels.
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir accused individuals and groups from inside and outside the country of “fearmongering”, saying Iceland was being hit with misinformation and rhetoric taken “from the playbook of Nigel Farage and Reform”.
She said the referendum was at risk of being a target for Russia and “actors who seek to influence our public debate in a negative way”. Foreign interference and the spread of misinformation could end up affecting the result, the minister warned.
“I am fearing that we will face a Brexit moment (...) That would be, from my point of view, a rather dangerous path because … there were all kinds of lies put forward by the Brexiteers.” She cited disputed figures used by the leave campaign over how much money the UK sent to the EU.
The Icelandic coalition government – formed of the left-leaning parties the Social Democratic Alliance and the People’s party, and Þorgerður’s centre-right pro-European Liberal Reform party – surprised many when it announced in March that it would hold the EU referendum on 29 August, having previously said it would do so no later than 2027.
The move was in part motivated by threats from the US, a longtime close ally of Iceland, to forcibly acquire its closest neighbour, Greenland.
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir said: “For us, from my point of view, the international order that underpinned our security and prosperity for decades is under serious pressure. The world has changed so decisively, I would say, so Greenland has of course affected, or had influence on, our decision.”
Old alliances were being tested, she said, and trade used as a “political weapon”. “You do not treat a friend and an ally like Greenland and Denmark like the US did in the beginning of this year.”
She insisted, however, that Iceland’s relationship with the US remained strong and that it was broadening its alliances.
“Iceland being a member of the EU is not contradicting all the good relationship with the US. One thing does not exclude the other thing.”
#island #brexit #katrín #gunnarsdóttir
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When they vote in the August referendum, Icelanders will be asked not whether or not they want to join the EU but whether they want their government to resume accession talks with the bloc.
The country first applied for EU membership in 2009 and the following year the council agreed to open accession talks, but in 2013 the Icelandic government pulled out.
If Icelanders vote yes, talks will resume, and if a deal is reached, the government will hold a second referendum on whether or not it should be accepted.
Advocates of joining the EU see it as important for international security and an opportunity for better integration in Europe, while those against warn of the potential impact on fishing, agriculture and Iceland’s sovereignty.
Fishing, which as well as being one of the country’s biggest exports is also deeply rooted in Icelandic culture and identity, is a particularly emotive area of debate.
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir appealed to Icelandic voters to “make up their own minds” and be careful of their sources. Some political parties were spreading misinformation in the way critics believe Ukip did in the run-up to the UK Brexit referendum, she said.
“It’s like they are having the playbook from Nigel Farage and Reform, and of course that is concerning,” she said.
A spokesperson for Reform said: “Reform UK has no connection to Iceland.” They added: “We wish them well in staying outside of the EU.”
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir’s comments come after the prime minister, Kristrún Frostadóttir, warned that foreign influence in the referendum would “not be tolerated, whether from the European Union, China, Russia or the United States”.
The president, Halla Tómasdóttir, issued a warning about the dangers of AI, which she said “can instantly produce content that appears credible but is misleading, spread unverified information at breakneck speed, and influence our opinions and wellbeing in ways we are not always aware of”.
#island #brexit #katrín #gunnarsdóttir
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Britain’s Revolving Door: Starmer Out, Burnham In
Keir Starmer just resigned, not in disgrace but in exhaustion — and under quiet mutiny. After two years in office and months of collapsing support inside Labour, he told the country he’d “heard the answer” from his own MPs and accepted that he’s not the man to lead them into the 2029 election. The troops found a new general, and he read the room before they shot him in it.
Enter Andy Burnham, 56, career operator and freshly returned “King of the North” who just walked back into Parliament on a tailor‑made by‑election. He immediately scooped up endorsements from would‑be rivals like Wes Streeting, and the party is already treating him less like a candidate and more like a coronation in progress.
Technically there’s a leadership timetable, nominations, possible contest. In practice, markets rallied the minute the Streeting–Burnham axis signaled continuity, not chaos, and the pound and gilts reacted like someone had just switched off the fire alarm.
This is the seventh British prime minister since the Brexit vote — an entire G7 country running its executive branch like a revolving‑door internship.
Voters are furious that nobody delivers “change,” bond markets are furious that anyone even talks about borrowing for it, and Burnham hasn’t yet offered more than a slogan about “fundamental change” and cheaper living.
He inherits high debt, the steepest borrowing costs in the G7, flat growth, a defense budget revolt that already cost a minister his job, and Nigel Farage screaming for an immediate general election.
So the script is set: one “decent man” exits after being “royally done over” by his own party; another is shoved into place by the same machine, while calling himself the vehicle of renewal.
Britain gets yet another unelected prime minister, investors get “stability,” Labour gets a new face for the same bind, and the electorate gets to watch the uniparty swap captains on a ship they’re no longer allowed to steer.
#UK #Starmer #Burnham #Labour #Farage #Brexit #politics #fakeDemocracy
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Keir Starmer just resigned, not in disgrace but in exhaustion — and under quiet mutiny. After two years in office and months of collapsing support inside Labour, he told the country he’d “heard the answer” from his own MPs and accepted that he’s not the man to lead them into the 2029 election. The troops found a new general, and he read the room before they shot him in it.
Enter Andy Burnham, 56, career operator and freshly returned “King of the North” who just walked back into Parliament on a tailor‑made by‑election. He immediately scooped up endorsements from would‑be rivals like Wes Streeting, and the party is already treating him less like a candidate and more like a coronation in progress.
Technically there’s a leadership timetable, nominations, possible contest. In practice, markets rallied the minute the Streeting–Burnham axis signaled continuity, not chaos, and the pound and gilts reacted like someone had just switched off the fire alarm.
This is the seventh British prime minister since the Brexit vote — an entire G7 country running its executive branch like a revolving‑door internship.
Voters are furious that nobody delivers “change,” bond markets are furious that anyone even talks about borrowing for it, and Burnham hasn’t yet offered more than a slogan about “fundamental change” and cheaper living.
He inherits high debt, the steepest borrowing costs in the G7, flat growth, a defense budget revolt that already cost a minister his job, and Nigel Farage screaming for an immediate general election.
So the script is set: one “decent man” exits after being “royally done over” by his own party; another is shoved into place by the same machine, while calling himself the vehicle of renewal.
Britain gets yet another unelected prime minister, investors get “stability,” Labour gets a new face for the same bind, and the electorate gets to watch the uniparty swap captains on a ship they’re no longer allowed to steer.
#UK #Starmer #Burnham #Labour #Farage #Brexit #politics #fakeDemocracy
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