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

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) – Voters in Iceland went to the polls Saturday to decide whether the country should resume long-stalled negotiations to become a member of the European Union, in the shadow of U.S.

Key points

• 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?
• A yes vote would trigger negotiations with the EU's executive branch, the European Commission, covering 35 areas, from the economy to human rights.
• If voters reject the proposal, that's it, for a generation at least.

What happened

Notably, 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?

Meanwhile, a yes vote would trigger negotiations with the EU's executive branch, the European Commission, covering 35 areas, from the economy to human rights. Some supporters believe the European Union could offer protections if Trump ever created similar threats against Iceland. They additionally see economic stability in joining the bloc.

If voters reject the proposal, that's it, for a generation at least. Opponents have rallied around the threat EU membership would pose to Iceland's rich fishing stocks and the fact that Iceland already reaps benefits from being in the EU's frictionless single market and the Schengen free-travel zone.

The bottom line

For now, trumps Greenland threats cast a shadow on Icelands vote on whether to remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.