Icelandic, Irish officials urge more competitive EU amid global uncertainty

Officials from Iceland and Ireland on Saturday said that the EU needs to become more competitive and more confident in defending its values in an increasingly uncertain world.

Speaking at a panel during the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in southern Türkiye, Iceland’s Foreign Minister Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir his country’s government wants to resume negotiations on EU membership.

She said Iceland’s small currency, high inflation and high interest rates have increased the importance of economic security.

“We have the smallest currency in the world,” she said, noting that Iceland has inflation rates two to three times higher than elsewhere in Europe and interest rates of around 8%.

Gunnarsdottir said the EU’s competitiveness should not be measured only by growth, deregulation or speed.

“Part of the very big bulk of Europe’s competitiveness is that Europe is sticking to its values,” she said.

She argued that the bloc should speak more loudly on democracy, human rights, freedom and territorial integrity.

The Icelandic minister also praised the EU for backing Denmark in discussions over Greenland.

“It was quite important and impressive when the nations of the European Union stood by Denmark’s side,” she said.

Gunnarsdottir also said countries outside the EU, including Türkiye and Iceland, should continue building beneficial partnerships with the bloc.

“Turkey, as Iceland, I think when you hold to your principles, then all these countries, we can be stronger together,” she said.

Need to reduce bureaucracy

Meanwhile, Thomas Byrne, Ireland’s minister of state for European affairs and defense, said the EU must reduce bureaucracy and simplify requirements for businesses.

“On some occasions, I think we have gone too far with some of the bureaucratic requirements,” he said.

Byrne said the bloc is now focused on implementing reforms proposed in the Draghi and Letta reports to improve competitiveness and make the single market more efficient.

He also stressed that the EU remains fundamentally “a peace project,” noting that Saturday marked the 75th anniversary of the Treaty of Paris that created the European Coal and Steel Community, where the bloc came from.

Byrne added that Ireland supports stronger ties with Türkiye and sees opportunities to modernize relations and expand business cooperation.

"Ireland wants very strong relations with Türkiye, that's for sure. And we think there is an opportunity to modernize the relationship, to look at the opportunities that are there," he said.

Byrne recalled that his hometown still remembers aid delivered during the Irish famine in the 1840s, when a Turkish ship brought food to local people. He said the town’s symbol still reflects that history and added: “There’s a willingness to work with Türkiye.”