Marine Le Pen and Nigel Farage, at the forefront respectively of the ultranationalist and eurosceptic parties National Rally and Reform, have celebrated from France and the United Kingdom the result of the referendum held this Saturday in Iceland, in which the citizens have rejected continuing the discussions for a possible accession to the European Union. Both leaders interpret the result as a direct disavowal of the community project.
After the count was known, Farage spread a message on social media in which he stated: "Congratulations to Iceland for maintaining its independence," emphasizing that the "no" campaign focused particularly on the possible repercussions of joining the EU on fishing, a key and strategic sector of the Icelandic economy.
Le Pen, for her part, has gone a step further by asserting that the result of the consultation demonstrates that the Icelandic people have highlighted "an evidence" such as that "accession to the European Union is not the natural horizon of every European democracy."
The French leader has insisted that "Peoples must be able to decide for themselves their future, their institutions, and their ability to defend their national interests," presenting this setback to community enlargement as a blow to "federalism" and to the "transfers of sovereignty to the European Commission."
In the same vein, Le Pen concluded that "This vote reminds us that another Europe is possible, a Europe of free, sovereign nations that cooperate voluntarily on issues of common interest."