Nordic Council of Ministers to hold Energy and climate day at Shanghai World EXPO 2010
The Nordic Council of Ministers is to hold a Nordic- Chinese Energy and Climate Day on the 25th of June 2010 at the Shanghai World Expo, bringing together ministers, business leaders, researchers and other key stakeholders from China and the Nordic region.
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EFTA Surveillance Authority´s preliminary findings regarding a complaint concerning Iceland´s Emergency Act No 125/2008
The EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) presented its preliminary findings in a letter dated 4 December 2009 on a complaint raised by a group of general creditors of the Icelandic banks Glitnir bank, Kaupthing bank, Landsbanki Islands, SPRON and Sparisjodabanki Islands
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Iceland's negotiation committee appointed
The Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs has appointed Iceland's negotiation committee for the upcoming accession negotiations with the European Union. Ambassador Stefan Haukur Johannesson is the Chief negotiator and will lead the negotiation committee. The negotiation committee consists of the Chief negotiator, 10 chairpersons of individual negotiation teams and seven other members.
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Foreign Minister appoints Chief negotiator
The Minister for Foreign Affairs has appointed Ambassador Stefan Haukur Johannesson to serve as Iceland's Chief negotiator in the upcoming accession negotiations with the European Union
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The Icelandic Government submits answers to a Questionnaire from the European Commission
All ministries and a number of agencies contributed to this effort, which resulted in more than 2600 pages of answers, in addition to annexes and attachments, 8870 pages in total. The answers will form the basis for the Commission?s opinion to the European Council regarding Iceland?s readiness for formal candidate status.
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Foreign Minister discusses economic crisis and climate change at UN General Assembly
Iceland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ossur Skarphedinsson, discussed the effects of the economic crisis in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Saturday 26 September. The Minister conveyed Iceland's deep dissatisfaction with ongoing delays on reviewing the Stand-By Arrangement with the International Monetary Fund due to unrelated bilateral disputes.
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Icelandic Foreign Minister meets with British and Dutch counterparts
Ossur Skarphedinsson, David Miliband and Maxime Verhagen discussed the Icesave issue on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
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Foreign Minister attending UN General Assembly
Ossur Skarphedinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, will address the General Assembly on Saturday, 26 September
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Icelandic Foreign Minister meets with IMF chief
Ossur Skarphedinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs, met yesterday with Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Managing Director of the IMF in New York
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Spanish Foreign Minister says Iceland has much to contribute in the EU
Iceland's Foreign Minister, Ossur Skarphedinsson, met with his Spanish counterpart, Miguel Angel Moratinos, yesterday evening at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
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EU questionnaire for Iceland made public
A questionnaire, presented yesterday by the European Commissioner for Enlargement, Olli Rehn, to the Icelandic Prime Minister, Johanna Sigurdardottir, has been made public. The questionnaire includes 2,500 questions in 33 chapters.
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Nordic and Baltic Foreign Ministers meet in Iceland
Ossur Skarphedinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, chaired an annual meeting of Nordic and Baltic Foreign Ministers in Iceland
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Joint declaration of Nordic and Baltic Foreign Ministers
The Nordic and Baltic Foreign Ministers call upon the Sri Lankan Government to solve the humanitarian crisis
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NATO Secretary General visits Iceland
First visit of Anders Fogh Rasmussen, new Secretary General, to a NATO member country.
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Open debate in the Security Council on "Women and peace and security" and Security Council resolution 1820
Statement by Mr. Jón Erlingur Jónasson, Deputy Permanent Representative.
French Minster for European Affairs visits Iceland
Pierre Lellouche French Minster for European Affairs and Icelandic Foreign Minister discuss Iceland's EU application.
MORE...Skarphedinsson welcomes decision of EU Foreign Ministers
Foreign Ministers of the EU have invited the Commission to prepare an opinion on Iceland's preparedness to enter negotiations on accession.
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Lithuanian Parliament supports Iceland's EU application
The Lithuanian Parliament, Seimas, agreed today on a parliamentary resolution welcoming and supporting Iceland’s decision to apply for accession to the European Union and inviting other EU member states to support the application.
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Iceland submits formal EU application in Stockholm
Foreign Minister Össur Skarphéðinsson submitted today a formal application for accession to the EU to Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt in Stockholm.
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Foreign Ministers of Iceland and Sweden meet in Stockholm
Ossur Skarphedinsson will formally hand over Iceland's EU application at a meeting with Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.
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Iceland submits an application for accession to the EU
An advanced copy of Iceland's application for accession to the European Union has been submitted to the Swedish government, which currently holds the EU Presidency
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Iceland's Parliament votes in favour of applying for EU membership
The Parliament of Iceland voted today in favour of applying for membership of the European Union. This follows a resolution proposal submitted by the Minister for Foreign Affairs
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The World Financial and Economic Crisis and its Impact on Development
Statement by Mr. Emil Breki Hreggvidsson, Deputy Permanent Representative of Iceland to the United Nations.
MORE...Tenth Meeting of the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea
Statement by Ambassador Gunnar Pálsson, Permanent Representative of Iceland to the United Nations.
Energy, Efficiency, Energy Conservation and New and Renwable Sources of Energy
Statement by Ambassador Gunnar Pálsson, Permanent Representative of Iceland to the United Nations.
MORE...Meeting of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Nordic Countries
Declaration from the meeting of the Ministers for Foreign Affaris of the Nordic Countries in Reykjavik 8-9 June 2009
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Nordic Foreign Ministers meet in Reykjavik
The five Ministers will discuss the Stoltenberg report on Nordic foreign and security policy cooperation and international issues
MORE...Climate change and its possible security implications
Statement by the Permanent Representative of Iceland to the United Nations, Ambassador Gunnar Pálsson.
MORE...Foreign minister visits Malta, discusses EU
Ossur Skarphedinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs has today and yesterday visited Malta where he met with Maltese Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Foreign Minister Tonio Borg.
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A proposal for a parliamentary resolution on application for accession to the European Union
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ossur Skarphedinsson, will put forward a proposal for a parliamentary resolution on application
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Foreign Minister strongly condemns North Korea's nuclear test
The Icelandic Government's clear position is against any use of nuclear weapons or actions likely to promote proliferation.
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Icelandic Embassies will be point of contact for tourism related information
The Icelandic Foreign Service, the Trade Council of Iceland and the Icelandic Tourist Board increase cooperation.
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Foreign Minister participates in the EEA Council meeting
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ossur Skarphedinsson also met with Ministerial colleagues and representatives of the European Commission.
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Iceland donates 5 million IKR in emergency relief in Sri Lanka
Ossur Skarphedinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, urges the Government of Sri Lanka and the Tamil Tigers to ensure that the civilian population is protected in the fighting.
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Iceland responds to UK Treasury Select Committee's report in a letter to MPs
Iceland's Ambassador in London has sent a letter, on behalf of the Minister for Foreign Affairs Össur Skarphéðinsson, to all Members of the United Kingdom Parliament
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Icelandic Foreign Minister makes a formal complaint on British PM's comments
The Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ossur Skarphedinsson, today made a formal complaint on comments made by the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, during a session of Parliamentary question time
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Icelandic Press Officer to join UNICEF in Sudan
The Icelandic Crisis Response Unit has deployed a press officer, Mr. Steinar Sveinsson, for two months, to UNICEF in Sudan.
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Code of Conduct for the Foreign Service
This is the first Code of Conduct to be issued by an Icelandic Ministry, though the Government has recently set up a working group to establish a general Code of Conduct for the civil service as a whole.
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Iceland comments on EC proposals for restructuring of financial markets supervision in Europe
Iceland has sent the European Commission comments on the Commission?s proposals on addressing the financial meltdown and the actions necessary to remedy the crisis.
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Iceland and Dominica to cooperate on geothermal energy
Iceland and the Commonwealth of Dominica have signed a memorandum of understanding on geothermal energy cooperation.
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Iceland's Foreign Minister concerned regarding N-Korea's missile launch
The Icelandic Foreign Minister fully supports calls from the international community that North-Korea respects its international commitments and engages in talks with other states.
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NATO summit welcomes Iceland's initiative on the High North
Iceland's Foreign Minister urges NATO to increase its role in the High North but cautions against increased military presence in the area.
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Iceland's FM and US President discuss geothermal energy
President Obama designates a special contact for Iceland on cooperation in the field of geothermal energy
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UK Treasury Committe publishes report on failure of Icelandic Banks
The Treasure Committe of the House of Commons has published a report examining the consequences of the failure of the Icelandic banks in October 2008. The report is the first in a series on the Banking Crisis.
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Foreign Minister attending NATO anniversary Summit
Iceland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ossur Skarphedinsson, will attend the 60th anniversary NATO Summit,
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Foreign Ministers of Iceland and UK meet in London
The Icelandic Foreign Minister, Mr Ossur Skarphedinsson, and the Foreign Secretary, Mr David Miliband MP, met in London on 31 March 2009
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Increased cooperation in promoting Iceland and Icelandic products
Cooperation Agreement between the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Icelandic Tourist Board and the Trade Council of Iceland on Promote Iceland
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Report on Nordic Development and Humanitarian Programmes
A report on Nordic development and humanitarian programmes in Afghanistan has been published
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Absentee voting for Parliamentary elections begins
Absentee voting for the 25 April Parliamentary elections in Iceland will begin on Monday, 16 March 2009.
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A Risk Assessment for Iceland
Professor Valur Ingimundarson, Chairman of the interdisciplinary Commission for a Risk Assessment for Iceland, today delivered the Commission's report to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Össur Skarphéðinsson.
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Iceland invites the OSCE to observe elections
The Icelandic delegation to OSCE, in Vienna, has invited the organization to observe the early, parliamentary elections, planned for this spring.
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Foreign Ministers of Iceland and Albania meet
Iceland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Össur Skarphedinsson, met with the Foreign Minister of Albania, Lulzim Basha, on February 12 during his visit to Iceland to discuss NATO’s enlargement process as well as energy issues.
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Icelandic Foreign Minister interviewed by David Frost
Össur Skarphéðinsson, the Icelandic Foreign Minister, talked about the Icelandic economy, European issues and fisheries with David Frost on the television station Al Jazeera.
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Stoltenberg Report presented to Nordic Foreign Ministers
Össur Skarphéðinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs today received, on behalf of his Nordic colleagues, a report by Thorvald Stoltenberg, former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence of Norway
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Political advisor to the Minister
Kristján Guy Burgess has been appointed political advisor to the Minister for Foreign Affairs
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New Minister for Foreign Affairs
A new Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ossur Skarphedinsson, took office yesterday, replacing Mrs. Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir,
Security Prospects in the High North
Important changes are under way in the High North which will have a broad impact on international affairs. The Government of Iceland is organising, jointly with NATO, a seminar in Reykjavík on 29 January 2009 to discuss current and future strategic implications of the developments in the High North.
MORE...Iceland's coalition government resigns
Iceland's Prime Minister, Geir H. Haarde, announced today the resignation of the coalition government of the Independence Party and the Social Democratic Alliance.
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Iceland's Foreign Minister returns
Doctors in Stockholm confirmed this morning that the minister's brain tumour is benign.
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U.S. and Iceland sign a Trade and Investment Cooperation Agreement
The Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Europe and the Middle East, Christopher S. Wilson, and the acting Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Össur Skarphéðinsson, today signed in Reykjavik a U.S.-Iceland Trade and Investment Cooperation Agreement.
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Minister's absence extended
The medical treatment of Iceland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, in Stockholm has been extended
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Statement Concerning Legal Proceedings Against UK Authorities
The government of Iceland has decided to examine any and all possibilities of Iceland seeking redress before the European Court of Human Rights for the application by UK authorities of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 against Landsbanki last year.
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Minister's absence due to treatment
Iceland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, will undergo radiation therapy at the Karolinska hospital in Stockholm next week.
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Iceland's Foreign Minister supports IWC appeal of an immediate stop to military action in Gaza
Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, and honorary member of the International Women's Commission (IWC) for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace, encourages attention to the situation in Gaza.
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