Socialism Not Possible Within EU, Icelandic Youth Groups Argue

Socialist ideals are incompatible with the European Union's framework, according to Silja Sóley Birgisdóttir, a city councilor for the Socialist Party in Reykjavík. She was a key speaker at a joint meeting of the Young Left Greens and Roði – the youth wing of the socialists – held to articulate left-wing perspectives against Iceland's potential EU membership ahead of a planned referendum.

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In essence, socialism is not even a possibility within the EU because of the market rules and the regulatory framework. They also have a very harsh foreign and asylum seeker policy which is a bit contradictory to our policy.

Birgisdóttir argued that the EU's market regulations and governing principles fundamentally prevent the implementation of socialist policies. She also pointed to the bloc's foreign and asylum policies as being in direct opposition to their own. "In essence, socialism is not even a possibility within the EU because of the market rules and the regulatory framework," she stated.

The meeting aimed to highlight these anti-EU viewpoints, which Birgisdóttir believes have not been adequately presented. She suggested that the EU is increasingly leaning towards the right, making it more feasible to advance left-wing agendas within Iceland's own parliament, the Althingi. "It should be very clear that it is not what we want," she added, urging left-leaning individuals to examine the EU's actions and policies.

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It should be very clear that it is not what we want.

Leaders from both youth organizations, Halldór Ísak Ólafsson of Roði and Illugi Gunnarsson of Ungir vinstri grænir, echoed these sentiments. They expressed shared concerns about the EU's right-wing economic management, its foreign policy, its stance on the conflict in Gaza, and its perceived militarism. Both emphasized the importance of national sovereignty and the right of the Icelandic people to self-determination, arguing that the solutions to domestic economic and social issues lie within Iceland, not through EU membership.

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It is very difficult to pursue a hard left policy within the EU.