House of ice and cod: the US-Icelandic alliance throughout the Cold War

• Main Author: Moosios, Jeffrey Allen
• Other Authors: History, Clune, Lori, DenBeste, Michelle, Roberts, Blain
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/147644

From 1946 to 2006, the Icelandic government made sure to protect their people, their elves, and their cod from foreign powers. However, in a Cold War world, the need for spheres of influence on the part of the United States complicated Iceland?s security. The U.S. foreign policy makers intended to use economic and military coercion to create an alliance with Iceland. Iceland joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and offered an airbase in Keflav?k to help the United States? goal of collective security. The Icelanders and the British fought in three cod wars dragging the United States in to mediate between allies. The question of stationing military personnel and weapons further complicated their relationship. This work uses the range from 1946 to 2006 to show the ways in which two countries dealt with situations involving economics, the military, and the issues of alliance. Also, by showing these situations, one can view how the Cold War was truly a global war where nations large and small were affected in some way. Social Sciences