Iceland begins EU accession talks

 

Iceland kicks off lengthy EU accession talks in Brussels on Tuesday, with fisheries and banking expected to be divisive issues. But opposition could also come from at home, as public support for membership wanes.
Iceland is beginning formal accession talks with the European Union on Tuesday, following the approval of the bloc's foreign ministers in Brussels.
The EU ministers agreed a "negotiating framework" on Monday, despite differences over such issues as whale hunting and the Icelandic banking collapse that hit British and Dutch investors in 2008. Iceland is already a member of the Schengen border-free travel zone and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), and hopes to join the bloc in about two years' time.