Trump’s Greenland threats cast a shadow on Iceland’s vote on whether to trigger EU membership talks

Trump’s Greenland threats cast a shadow on Iceland’s vote on whether to trigger EU membership talks 0 seconds of 1 minute, 52 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Icelanders to vote on whether to restart talks to join European Union 01:09 Subtitle Settings OffEnglish(US)_v Font Color White Font Opacity 100% Font Size 100% Font Family Arial Character Edge None Edge Color Black Background Color Black Background Opacity 50% Window Color Black Window Opacity 0% Reset WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan 100%75%50%25% 200%175%150%125%100%75%50% ArialCourierGeorgiaImpactLucida ConsoleTahomaTimes New RomanTrebuchet MSVerdana NoneRaisedDepressedUniformDrop Shadow WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan 100%75%50%25%0% WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan 100%75%50%25%0% 00:00 01:52 01:52 More Videos 01:09 Icelanders to vote on whether to restart talks to join European Union 01:49 Election law expert breaks down Supreme Court ruling on mail voting restrictions 01:03 Israelis join anti-government protest in Tel Aviv with elections months away 01:22 Nordic and Baltic leaders join Zelenskyy in Kyiv for Ukrainian flag ceremony 00:32 European leaders arrive in Kyiv to mark Ukraine's Independence Day 01:41 US seeks to tap human appetite for seafood to fight growing numbers of invasive European green crabs 01:42 AP music writer: Dolly Parton 'beloved by people across gender and race and class lines' 01:47 US states grapple with Supreme Court's order on elections Close 1 of 6 | Icelanders are voting Saturday on whether to restart talks about joining the European Union. (AP Video by Kwiyeon Ha) 2 of 6 | Icelandic Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir speaks at a public event about a referendum on whether to resume accession negotiations with the European Union in Reykjavik, Iceland, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Di Marco) 3 of 6 | People gather for an “Afram Island,” “Forward, Iceland,” rally opposing the resumption of European Union accession talks at Austurvollur in Reykjavik, Iceland, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Di Marco) 4 of 6 | Icelandic Foreign Minister Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdottir, center, sits among the participants at a public event about a referendum on whether to resume accession negotiations with the European Union in Reykjavik, Iceland, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Di Marco) 5 of 6 | People hold a banner reading “No” as they listen to speakers at an “Afram Island,” “Forward, Iceland,” rally opposing the resumption of European Union accession talks at Austurvollur in Reykjavik, Iceland, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Di Marco) 6 of 6 | Former Icelandic Prime Minister and former Left-Green Movement leader Katrín Jakobsdóttir reacts at an “Afram Island,” “Forward, Iceland” rally opposing the resumption of European Union accession talks at Austurvollur in Reykjavik, Iceland, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Di Marco) By KWIYEON HA and PAN PYLAS Updated 6:02 AM MESZ, August 29, 2026 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Reykjavik, Iceland (AP) — Voters in Iceland are heading to the polls Saturday to decide whether the country should resume long-stalled negotiations on becoming a member of the European Union, and they are doing so in the shadow of U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to control nearby Greenland. The yes-or-no referendum question is simple enough for the 265,000 or so eligible voters: Should Iceland resume accession negotiations with the European Union? If voters reject the proposal, that’s it, for a generation at least. A yes vote would trigger the start of a negotiating process with the EU’s executive branch, the European Commission, that will involve discussions on 35 areas, from the economy to human rights. Perhaps, most importantly for Iceland, its fishing stocks in the rich North Atlantic waters will be up for discussion, and not everyone is happy about that. But some also believe the European Union could offer protections if Trump were to ever make similar threats on Iceland. When Trump talked about U.S. control of Greenland, particularly at the start of this year, he altered the mood in Iceland, which is just 180 miles (290 km) away from the self-governing territory of Denmark, a longtime U.S. ally. Though Trump has indicated he won’t use force to seize Greenland, his interest doesn’t appear to have cooled. What to know about Iceland’s vote on whether to restart talks to join the EU 5 MIN READ 11 Quebec separatist leader says no independence referendum until Trump leaves office 2 MIN READ 63 Carney to address European Parliament as Canada deepens ties after break with Trump 2 MIN READ 63 The underlying worry among many in Iceland is clear — if Greenland is seized, is Iceland next? The ensuing question is clear too — if yes, does EU membership provide a bulwark against any new Trump ambition in the North Atlantic? Iceland’s left-leaning coalition government, elected in 2024, certainly thinks so and that’s largely why it moved forward the EU referendum that it had planned for next year. “We can’t really trust the U.S. anymore,” said Hildur Knútsdóttir, a horror fiction writer who plans to vote in favor of EU membership. After more than a decade, EU membership is back on the agenda EU talk is nothing new in Iceland, which formally ended its previous effort to join the bloc in 2015, largely over concerns of what membership would mean for its rich fish resources. The hefty cod and haddock catches from the chilled Arctic waters around Iceland are central to the national identity too. The descendants of Vikings who settled Iceland have been living off the sea for centuries. With much of the country’s economy geared toward its lucrative and well-managed fishing industry, fishing rights have been a talking point in the run-up to the referendum. Joining the 27-nation EU would require Iceland joining the bloc’s common fisheries policy that would allow Spanish, Dutch and other trawlers into their waters. The government has indicated it would look for a special arrangement, potentially a full opt-out from the policy. In the final days ahead of the vote, Iceland’s prime minister, Kristrún Frostadóttir, has sought to remind voters that the referendum is not the end of the matter, and that there will be another referendum if and when a membership agreement with the EU has been reached. “This is not an election about membership and not about adaptation, as there will be another referendum on an accession agreement if the result is yes,” Frostadóttir told a rally. Fish is not just an economic matter, it’s part of the national identity For many, Iceland’s national identity and ultimately its culture is on the ballot too. Iceland, which gained independence from Denmark in 1944, has a proud history of independence, of not allowing itself to be pushed around by bigger and richer European nations. It even fought — and won — the so-called Cod Wars with Britain in the 1970s over its fishing grounds. Backers of EU membership say it’s best for Iceland to get closer to its European neighbors to combat issues that don’t respect borders, such as climate change. Iceland is already in the EU’s frictionless single market and the Schengen free-travel zone. Opponents say the current setup is just right and that Iceland already enjoys all the benefits of European integration without the sovereignty compromises that inevitably will come from being a full member. “I think Iceland is better off outside of the EU, within the close collaboration with the EU,” former prime minister, Katrín Jakobsdóttir, told The Associated Press.