Icelandic Coast Guard

But I think the Arctic Council will still play a vital role in just being this platform for the countries.

You talked a bit about the Icelandic Coast Guard.

I've seen Coast Guard vessels in port in the times that I've been in Iceland.

Is the current defense model, from your perspective, sufficient? Would you like to see a greater indigenous defense capacity or greater defense spending on security services internally?

You are now speaking to former Minister of Interior.

However, the British refused to comply.

The Icelandic Coast Guard began ramming ships to drive them away and even cut their fishing nets, but the British refused to recognize Iceland's extended territory in the waters around Iceland.

Knowing that it had no recourse against British military might without having a formal military or navy themselves, Iceland issued a clever diplomatic threat.

It would leave NATO.

NATO's Icelandic air policing mission formally began in 2008 at Kiflavik air base, and NATO has since maintained overwatch and interception capabilities thereby deploying fighter aircraft on a rotational basis.

Working closely with the Icelandic Coast Guard, Allied nations ensure a ready and robust posture in the Arctic.

Operating continuously, after the activation of Enhanced Vigilance Activity Eastern Sentry last September, the mission has evolved alongside the changing security environment to address emerging and future threats, combining national surveillance, command and control and fighter aircraft held at readiness under NATO-controlled arrangements with Allies.

While air policing primarily was more oriented to protect against manned and unmanned aircraft in the air, the air defense framework, entailing a multi-layered, 360-degree approach, protects NATO territory against the whole range of threats across all domains, providing NATO greater flexibility to respond to changes in the security environment.

So they actually had specialized vessels to cut the trawling nets of the British fishing fleet.

And the Icelandic Coast Guard even managed to ram some British frigates, believe it or not.

And then they threatened basically to withdraw from NATO and throw the Americans out of their air force base in Keflavik near Reykjavik airport.

If the Americans don't put pressure on the Brits to stop the trawling.