Verhandlungen mit Irland, Dänemark und Norwegen
Negotiations with Ireland, Denmark and Norway
Once negotiations with the United Kingdom had begun, those with other countries applying for accession to the European Economic Community (EEC) could also begin. Just as they had done in 1961 and 1967, Ireland, Denmark and Norway followed closely behind the United Kingdom from the very moment that it submitted its application for accession to the EEC. In Ireland, there were few problems, since both the political will of the government and the wish of the people were unreservedly in favour of accession to the Community.
However, this was not the case in Denmark and even less so in Norway. There were problems for the governments both of the applicant countries and of the Member States. Indeed, Danish agriculture, being highly efficient, might well have threatened the interests of small farmers in other countries of the Community. Norwegian fishing rights, for their part, soured negotiations on Norway’s accession. In 1971, accession negotiations with Denmark and Norway buried once and for all the draft treaty for a Nordic economic union, or Nordek, which had, nevertheless, been close to a successful conclusion after 15 years of discussions. The Nordek Treaty was aimed at facilitating the process of economic integration and the use of resources that were available on the Nordic market.