Iceland applied for EU membership in 2009 and accession negotiations were formally opened in July 2010. In its most recent annual Progress Report on Iceland, published last October, the Commission noted the high level of progress on the negotiations due to Iceland's already highly integrated structures, its membership of the European Economic Area and the Schengen Zone, and its high calibre public administration. The accession process is currently in the screening phase, during which the Commission assesses the degree of compatibility of Iceland's laws with those of the EU. Screening reports have been delivered so far on 31 of the 35 so-called "Chapters" — specific areas of the acquis — and, due to Iceland's degree of alignment with EU law, negotiations on specific areas have been launched (eleven in total to date). It is expected that a further number of Chapters will be opened for negotiations at the next Intergovernmental Conference with Iceland, to be held in March.
Based on our close relationship with Reykjavik and on our own positive experience of enlargement in the past, Ireland supports the EU candidacy of Iceland. In this regard, we have been keen to offer advice and assistance when requested and Iceland would appear to find the Irish experience of particular relevance and value.
My Department facilitated a study visit to Dublin by an Icelandic accession team covering Common Foreign and Security Policy in October last year and provided a briefing session to an accession team covering Fisheries who visited Dublin the following month. A similar study visit focusing on our Lisbon referendum experience by a team of policy advisors from the Icelandic Ministry of Foreign Affairs took place in October 2010. More recently, Minister of State Creighton travelled to Iceland in October last year for meetings with Foreign Minister Skarphéðinsson and senior officials from the various Ministries on the accession dossier and overall bilateral relations. The Minister and officials from my Department and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine also held discussions with the Icelandic Chief Negotiator for EU Accession on his recent visit to Ireland 15-16 February.
The fisheries sector remains extremely important for Iceland's economy, as indeed it is for our own, and will be an area of sensitivity. These matters will be addressed in detail under the fisheries Chapter of the accession negotiation framework and officials from my Department liaise closely with officials in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to ensure that Ireland's interests are safeguarded in negotiations. In the meantime, parallel work will continue on the review of the Common Fisheries Policy, to which Ireland actively contributes.
Accession is a negotiated process and, as in any negotiation, the eventual outcome and timeframe cannot be predicted with precision. There are areas where differences between Icelandic law and EU law still exist and these areas, which include fisheries, will present challenges during the negotiations. Ireland has and will continue to play an active role in protecting our own and the EU's interests with regard to negotiations with Iceland. In this regard we look forward to working closely with Iceland, with the European Commission and with our fellow Member States to ensure a satisfactory and mutually beneficial outcome to the Icelandic accession negotiations.
