Hoyvík Agreement

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Hoyvík Agreement
Agreement between the Government of Iceland, of the one part, and the Government of Denmark and the Home Government of the Faroe Islands, of the other part
Type Bilateral trade
Signed31 August 2005 (2005-08-31)
Location Hoyvík, Faroe Islands
ConditionApproval by Løgting and Althing
Signatories
Languages

The Hoyvík Agreement is a free trade agreement between the Faroe Islands and Iceland.

Free trade policy in which countries governments do not restrict imports from, or exports to, other countries

Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports as well as the idea of the free market as applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold liberal economic positions while economically left-wing and nationalist political parties generally support protectionism, the opposite of free trade.

Faroe Islands Autonomus constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark

The Faroe Islands, or the Faeroe Islands—a North Atlantic archipelago located 200 miles (320 km) north-northwest of the United Kingdom and about halfway between Norway and Iceland—are an autonomous country of the Kingdom of Denmark. Total area is about 1,400 square kilometres (540 sq mi) with a population of 50,322 in October 2017.

Iceland island republic in Northern Europe

Iceland is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic, with a population of 348,580 and an area of 103,000 km2 (40,000 sq mi), making it the most sparsely populated country in Europe. The capital and largest city is Reykjavík, with Reykjavík and the surrounding areas in the southwest of the country being home to over two-thirds of the population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically active. The interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and lava fields, mountains, and glaciers, and many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate climate, despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle. Its high latitude and marine influence keep summers chilly, with most of the archipelago having a tundra climate.

Contents

History

The agreement was signed 31 August 2005 in the town of Hoyvík in the Faroe Islands. [1] The Faroese Løgting ratified the agreement on 2 May 2006 [1] and the Icelandic Alþingi did the same on 3 June.

Hoyvík Village in Faroe Islands, Kingdom of Denmark

Hoyvík is the third largest town in the Faroe Islands.

Løgting parliament of the Faroe Islands

The Løgting is the unicameral parliament of the Faroe Islands, an autonomous country within the Danish Realm.

On 21 August 2006, a statement was made by the annual general meeting of the West Nordic Council that the possibility of extending the agreement to include Greenland (thus creating a West Nordic free trade zone) should be seriously studied. It was noted at Løgting that the agreement could be extended to Norway and Canada in the future.

The West Nordic Council is a cooperation forum of the parliaments and governments of Greenland, the Faroe Islands and Iceland. It was initially founded in 1985 as the West Nordic Parliamentarian Council of Cooperation but the name was changed in 1997. The council comprises six MPs from each nation appointed by their respective parliaments. The annual general meeting of the council rotates between the members and is its highest authority. The work and activities of the Council are organized by a three-member presidium of which the president of the council is a member. The current president is Kári P. Højgaard.

Greenland autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark

Greenland is an autonomous constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for more than a millennium. The majority of its residents are Inuit, whose ancestors began migrating from the Canadian mainland in the 13th century, gradually settling across the island.

Norway constitutional monarchy in Northern Europe

Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northwestern Europe whose territory comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula; the remote island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard are also part of the Kingdom of Norway. The Antarctic Peter I Island and the sub-Antarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land.

Content

It is the most extensive free trade agreement that either nation has entered into. It guarantees almost complete freedom of goods, services, persons and capital. It also deals with competition and government subsidies and prohibits any kind of discrimination based on nationality except when it is specially provided for by the agreement. The agreement is unique for Iceland as it the first such agreement establishing free trade in agricultural products, a sector that usually sees a lot of protection from the Icelandic authorities.

A notable exception to the free trade agreement is the special status of the fisheries industry. Pre-existing restrictions on foreign investment in the industry present in both countries will not be abolished.

In addition to free trade, the agreement also provides a framework for increased cooperation between the nations regarding all the common interests of the nations. Especially mentioned fields of cooperation include: culture, education, sports, health care, transportation, communications, tourism, environmental issues, energy and resource management.

See also

Foreign relations of Iceland Overview of relations

Iceland established its foreign service in 1940 when Denmark became occupied by Nazi Germany and ties between the two countries were severed. The Republic of Iceland was founded in 1944. The Icelandic foreign service grew slowly in the post-WWII period, but increased rapidly after the mid-1990s. Iceland's closest relations are with the Nordic states, the European Union and the United States. Iceland has been a member of the United Nations since 1945 and NATO since 1949. In terms of European integration, Iceland is a member of EFTA, EEA and Schengen.

The Representation of the Faroes in Reykjavík is the official representative office of the Faroe Islands in Iceland. The Representation opened in 2007 after being established with the signing of the Hoyvík Free Trade Agreement in 2005.

Related Research Articles

The politics of the Faroe Islands a "constituent country" of the Kingdom of Denmark, function within the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic dependency, whereby the Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The Faroe Islands are politically associated with the Kingdom of Denmark, but have been self-governing since 1948. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Løgting. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature and the responsibility of Denmark. As of October 25, 2007, the Faroe Islands became one electoral district.

Tórshavn Place in Faroe Islands, Kingdom of Denmark

Tórshavn is the capital and largest town of the Faroe Islands. Tórshavn is in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the 347-meter-high (1,138 ft) mountain Húsareyn, and to the southwest, the 350-meter-high (1,150 ft) Kirkjubøreyn. They are separated by the Sandá River. The town proper has a population of 13,089 (2017), and the greater urban area a population of 21,000.

The króna is the currency of the Faroe Islands. It is issued by Danmarks Nationalbank , the central bank of Denmark. It is not an independent currency but a version of the Danish krone. Consequently, it does not have an ISO 4217 currency code and instead shares that of the Danish krone, DKK. The króna is subdivided into 100 oyru(r).

British occupation of the Faroe Islands

The British occupation of the Faroe Islands in World War II, also known as Operation Valentine, was implemented immediately following the German invasion of Denmark and Norway. It was a small component of the roles of Nordic countries in World War II.

LGBT rights in the Faroe Islands

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in the Faroe Islands are relatively similar to that of Denmark. The progress of LGBT rights has been slower, however. While same-sex sexual activity has been legal in the Faroe Islands since the 1930s, same-sex couples never had a right to a registered partnership. In April 2016, the Løgting passed legislation legalizing civil same-sex marriage on the Faroes, recognizing same-sex marriages established in Denmark and abroad and allowing same-sex adoption. This was ratified by the Folketing in April 2017. The law went into effect on 1 July 2017.

The unity of the Realm political relationship between the constituent countries of the Kingdom of Denmark

The term "the unity of the Realm" refers to the relationship between Denmark proper, the Faroe Islands and Greenland—three countries constituting the Kingdom of Denmark.

Joen Pauli Højgaard Ellefsen was a Faroese politician and member of the Union Party. He was Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands from 1981 to 1985.

Faroe Islands and the European Union

The Faroe Islands, a self-governing nation within the Kingdom of Denmark, is not part of the EU, as explicitly asserted by both Rome treaties.

Iceland–Norway relations Diplomatic relations between the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway

Iceland–Norway relations are foreign relations between Iceland and Norway. Iceland has an embassy in Oslo and Norway has an embassy in Reykjavík.

Nordic countries Geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic

The Nordic countries or the Nordics are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic, where they are most commonly known as Norden. The term includes Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, as well as Greenland and the Faroe Islands—which are both part of the Kingdom of Denmark—and the Åland Islands and Svalbard and Jan Mayen archipelagos that belong to Finland and Norway respectively, whereas the Norwegian Antarctic territories are often not considered a part of the Nordic countries, due to their geographical location. Scandinavians, who comprise over three quarters of the region's population, are the largest group, followed by Finns, who comprise the majority in Finland; other groups are indigenous minorities such as the Greenlandic Inuit and the Sami people, and recent immigrants and their descendants. The native languages Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese are all North Germanic languages rooted in Old Norse. Native non-Germanic languages are Finnish, Greenlandic and several Sami languages. The main religion is Lutheran Christianity. The Nordic countries have much in common in their way of life, history, religion, their use of Scandinavian languages and social structure. The Nordic countries have a long history of political unions and other close relations, but do not form a separate entity today. The Scandinavist movement sought to unite Denmark, Norway and Sweden into one country in the 19th century, with the indepedence of Finland in the early 20th century, and Iceland in the mid 20th century, this movement expanded into the modern organised Nordic cooperation which includes the Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers. Especially in English, Scandinavia is sometimes used as a synonym for the Nordic countries, but that term more properly refers to the three monarchies of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Geologically, the Scandinavian Peninsula comprises the mainland of Norway and Sweden as well as the northernmost part of Finland.

Arctic cooperation and politics

Arctic cooperation and politics are partially coordinated via the Arctic Council, composed of the eight Arctic nations: the United States of America, Canada, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, and Denmark with Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The dominant governmental power in Arctic policy resides within the executive offices, legislative bodies, and implementing agencies of the eight Arctic nations, and to a lesser extent other nations, such as United Kingdom, Germany, European Union and China. NGOs and Academia play a large part in Arctic policy. Also important are intergovernmental bodies such as the United Nations and NATO.

The Arctic Policy of the Kingdom of Denmark defines Denmark's]] foreign relations and policies with other Arctic countries, and Denmark's]] Strategy for the Arctic on issues occurring within the geographic boundaries of "the Arctic" or related to the Arctic or its peoples. The Kingdom of Denmark is an Arctic nation with the importance of the Unity of the Realm with Denmark in Europe and the self-governing countries Greenland in the Arctic and the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic.

Faroese independence movement

The Faroese independence movement or the Faroese national movement is a political movement which seeks the establishment of the Faroe Islands as a sovereign state outside Denmark. Reasons for complete autonomy include the linguistic and cultural divide between Denmark and the Faroe Islands as well as their lack of proximity to one another; the Faroe Islands are about 990 km from Danish shores.

Bárður á Steig Nielsen Faroese businessperson and politician

Bárður á Steig Nielsen is a Faroese politician and businessman. He has been the leader of the Union Party since 24 October 2015. He is also goalkeeper of the VÍF handball team and a former handball player of the Faroe Islands national team.

Bjørt Samuelsen Faroese journalist and politician

Bjørt Samuelsen is a Faroese journalist, specialist in food science and politician (Republic).

References

  1. 1 2 "Hoyvík Agreement". Government of the Faroe Islands. Retrieved 8 December 2018.