Does Not Rule Out Changes to Icelandic Air Policing

Last night, Minister for Foreign Affairs Þór­dís Kol­brún Reykfjörð Gylfa­dótt­ir told mbl.is that in light of the situation that has developed after the Russia’s invasion of Ukraine February 24, she does not rule out that changes will be made to Icelandic Air Policing — the NATO operation conducted to patrol Iceland’s airspace. She finds it likely that a reassessment of the present arrangement will be discussed. The need for a continuous protection of Iceland’s air space has not yet been formally discussed, she stated.

Since US forces left Iceland in 2006, Iceland’s NATO allies have periodically deployed fighter aircraft to Keflavík Airport to provide protection of the country’s airspace. The mission usually involves a deployment of NATO fighter aircraft for three to four weeks, three times a year.

We reported earlier that Iceland is on a list, published by Russia yesterday, of unfriendly countries. When asked about that last night, Þórdís Kolbrún stated that the ministry had not received confirmation of Iceland being on the list. On the other hand, she and her staff had read about it in the media, and she stated that Iceland is in good company on the list, among, for example, the rest of the Nordic nations.