By RIA Novosti,
Brussels : About 50% of Icelanders are opposed to the country joining the EU, Radio Contact station reported on Wednesday.
July’s Capacent Gallup poll indicated that 48.5% of respondents didn’t want Iceland to be a member of the EU, while 34.7% were in favor. 16.7% were undecided.
There was no indication as to the number of people polled.
The previous poll held by the company in May showed the number of people who were in favor of EU membership and those who opposed was equal, with 39% on each side.
Iceland’s parliament voted in July to provide the government with a mandate to start negotiations on joining the EU.
Reykjavik hopes that EU membership and the adoption of the euro will revive Iceland’s economy, which plunged into a recession last fall.
Iceland is already part of the European Economic Area, a trading block that gives Icelanders the right to live and work in the EU while allowing the country to determine its own agricultural, fishing and monetary policies.