Iceland and Montenegro could join the European Union together in 2028 if Icelandic voters approve restarting EU accession talks in a referendum scheduled for 29 August, according to Politico.
The publication reports that European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos described Iceland as a “special case” because of its participation in the European Economic Area (EEA) and the Schengen Area. She suggested that accession negotiations could take only one to two years if Icelanders vote to resume the process.
This would place Iceland on a similar timeline to Montenegro, which has provisionally closed more than half of the 33 negotiating chapters and aims to join the EU by 2028, Politico reported.
Another EU official said that simultaneous accession is a highly realistic scenario. As a highly developed economy, Iceland would likely become a net contributor to the EU budget, helping offset the financial impact of Montenegro’s accession, as Montenegro would become one of the bloc’s least affluent member states.
Montenegro’s Minister for European Affairs, Maida Gorčević, said Podgorica would welcome linking its accession process with Iceland’s and joining the EU together.
Iceland’s Foreign Minister, Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, also said simultaneous accession is entirely possible, depending on the progress of negotiations.
With a population of around 400,000, Iceland would become the smallest member state in the European Union if it joins, ahead of Malta, which has a population of approximately 590,000.
Joint accessions are not unprecedented in EU history. Spain and Portugal joined together in 1986, while Bulgaria and Romania entered the bloc simultaneously in 2007 under a single accession treaty. Earlier enlargements have also seen multiple countries admitted at the same time under one agreement.
