The European Union and Iceland on Tuesday formally opened the first intergovernmental talks to get the country a membership to the union as early as 2012.
"The opening of accession negotiations today marks a new chapter in the history of our relations with Iceland. Accession should be a win-win situation for both sides," said Stefan Füle, Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Commissioner.
"For Iceland, it will mean economic and monetary stability and a voice at the EU decision making table. For the EU, it will mean we become stronger in dealing with the Arctic region and in areas such as renewable energy and climate change," he said.
Iceland is the third country with which the EU is currently negotiating accession, after Croatia and Turkey, which both opened accession negotiations in 2005. It had applied for the entry in July 2009.
The Belgian Presidency delivered the EU Negotiating Framework, which is the core reference for the accession negotiations with a candidate country. It points out areas where special efforts are necessary to fulfill the accession criteria, which in the case of Iceland, include fisheries, agriculture and rural development, environment, free movement of capital, and financial services, the European Commission said.
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