When Iceland became a founding member of NATO in 1949, it did so on the explicit understanding that Iceland, which has never had a state funded military, would not be expected to establish an indigenous force, although provisions for such forces had been made in the Icelandic Constitution.
Iceland's main contribution to the common defense effort has been the rent-free provision of the "agreed areas"—sites for military facilities. By far the largest and most important of these is the NATO Naval Air Station at Keflavík. Although this base is manned primarily by U.S. forces, it has, as well, officers from Denmark and Norway. Units from these and other NATO countries also are deployed temporarily to Keflavík, and they stage practice operations. Previously many of these practices were anti-submarine warfare patrols, but these exercises have been halted since the withdrawal of the P-3 ASW aircraft from Keflavík.
Iceland and the United States regard the ongoing U.S. military presence since World War II as a cornerstone to bilateral foreign/security policy. Bilateral negotiations regarding implementation of a new "Agreed Minute" governing force structure and deployment for the defense of Iceland began in 2001. The U.S. Air Force announced plans to remove the four remaining interceptors based at Keflavík in 2003 but shelved the plans after the Icelandic government objected. There was speculation at the time that if the jets were withdrawn, Iceland would start a small army rather than an air force for defense. Talks about the American presence were restarted as of 2005, since the U.S. government is still keen on sending its troops and equipment to more important places. Proposals by the Icelandic government included a complete Icelandic takeover of the Airbase, as well as replacing the Pavehawk rescue helicopter unit with an detachment from the aeronautical half of the Icelandic Coast Guard, in exchange for the continued stationing of the four F-15C interceptors in Keflavík. On 15 March 2006 the U.S. government announced that the interceptors as well as the helicopter unit will will be withdrawn by the end of September 2006, drastically reducing U.S. presence at the Keflavík base.
In addition to providing the "agreed areas," the Government of Iceland contributes financially to NATO's international overhead costs and recently has taken a more active role in NATO deliberations and planning. Iceland hosted the NATO Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Reykjavík in June 1987 and participates in biennial NATO exercises entitled "Northern Viking" in Iceland; the most recent exercises were held in 2001. In 1997 Iceland hosted its first Partnership for Peace (PfP) exercise, "Cooperative Safeguard," which is the only multilateral PfP exercise so far in which Russia has participated. Another major PfP exercise was hosted in 2000.
Íslenska friðargæslan
The Icelandic foreign ministry operates a expeditionary military unit called the "Crisis Response Unit" or "Íslenska friðargæslan" (in english:The Icelandic Peacekeeping Guard). It has received training and equipment from the Norwegian army, and is manned by civilian specialists, policemen and coast guards. The Crisis Response Unit provided support to peacekeeping missions in Kosovo and Afghanistan running the airports in both territories' respective capitals. In October 2004 three Icelanders were injured in a suicide bomb attack in Kabul. The incident led to tough questioning of the group's commander Colonel Halli Sigurdsson focusing on his conduct (the incident apparently occurred while he was on a shopping expedition in an off-limits area) and his exact status: the opposition has accused the government of creating an army by stealth. Icelandic peacekeepers were pictured heavily armed in national papers alongside captions such as "If this is not a soldier then what is?" According to the, then foreign minister, Davíð Oddson, the peacekeepers are considered soldiers by NATO and International Law, but since they lack the proper training and are members of no army, they are, as for Icelandic politics, unbecoming of the title hermaður (soldier). The Crisis Response Unit has also sent Mobile Observation Teams to North Afganistan and observers to Sri Lanka.
Ranks of the Icelandic Crisis Response Unit
Ratsjárstofnun
Map of the
Radar Stations of
Ratsjárstofnun, centerpieces of the Icelandic Air Defence System.
Iceland also has a "Radar agency" which operates the Íslenska Loftvarnarkerfið ("Iceland Air Defense System"). It was founded in 1987, and operates four Radar complexes, a Software and Support Facility and a Control and Report Center. However it does not operate the fiber optic and microwave systems, they are under the care of the Landssími Íslands (the former state Telephone company). The Command and Report Center along with the Software and Support Facility are located in Keflavík. Like the Íslenska Friðargæslan it is under the auspices of the foreign ministry.
Landhelgisgæslan
The Icelandic Coast Guard originates back to the 1920s. Its main tasks from its initiation have been to protect Iceland's most valuable natural resource—its fishing areas—as well as provide security, search, and rescue services to Iceland's fishing fleet. In 1952, 1958, 1972, and 1975, the government expanded Iceland's exclusive economic zone to 4, 12, 50 and 200 nautical miles respectively. This led to Iceland's conflict with the United Kingdom, known as the "Cod Wars". The Icelandic Coast Guard and the Royal Navy confronted each other on several occasions during these years. Although few rounds were fired, there were many intense moments between the two nations. The Captains of the Icelandic Coast Guard ships were regarded as heroes and earned their names in the history of Iceland as Iceland's bravest men. This attitude of heroism towards the Coast Guard persists in Iceland.
Sérsveit Ríkislögreglustjóra
Viking squad members train outside one of the buildings of the National Theatre in
Reykjavík.
The Special Operations Unit of the National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police, Víkingasveitin, is similar to Germany's GSG 9 and Britain's SAS, a small and well trained group of operatives. The unit handles security of the state, anti/counter-terrorism projects, security of foreign dignitaries, as well supporting the police forces in the country when needed. The Viking team has five main squadrons: Bomb Squadron that specializes in explosives; Boat Squadron that specializes in operations on sea and water, diving and underwater warfare, and boat operations; Sniper Squadron that specializes in sniper warfare, entries, and close target reconnaissance; Intelligence Squadron that specializes in anti-terrorism intelligence, surveillance, and infiltration; and Airborne Squadron that specializes in airplane hijacking operations, skydiving and surprise assault operations, and port security. Members of the Viking team were deployed in the Balkans as a part of operations lead by NATO, and some members have been deployed to Afghanistan. The Special Operations Unit used to be under the command of the Reykjavík Chief of Police; however, in 2004, a new law was passed that put the Viking Team directly under the National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police.
Military branches: no regular military forces; Police, Icelandic Coast Guard; note - Iceland's defense is provided by the US-manned Iceland Defense Force (IDF) headquartered at Keflavík.
Military manpower:
Coast Guard: 130, The SOU of the National Commissioner of Police: 52-56 (2007), Radar Agency: 80, Crisis Response Unit: 100+. All combined: 362-366+.
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 71,486 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 62,990 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $0 (Coast Guard $24,000,000.-)
See also
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_of_Iceland under GFDL
