The Faroe Islands between East and West: the First Faroese Foreign Policy and Security Survey

Détails

The Russian invasion of Ukraine marks a new geopolitical reality. This new reality has not only implications for large states and middle powers. The new and brutal reality has also implications for microstates and non-sovereign actors.

As a self-governing entity within the Danish Kingdom, the Faroe Islands finds itself in a peculiar situation. For several years, Russia has been the largest national export market for Faroese fish products, and the trade relationship between the Faroe Islands and Russia spans more than 40 years. In 2021, the Russian export had a value of 2,2 billion DKK which is nearly half the national budget. However, the Faroese government has been unequivocal in its condemnation of the Russian invasion and its willingness to participate in all sanctions levelled against Russia.

In November/December 2021, the University of the Faroe Islands and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung conducted the first ever scientific survey on public attitudes to pressing foreign policy and security issues in the Faroe Islands. Despite the increased focus on great power rivalry in the Arctic region, few projects have examined the attitudes among people who actually live in the Arctic and North Atlantic territories. The survey examines public attitudes to NATO, the US, Russia, China, EU, Denmark, risk perception, climate change and other pressing matters. This is the fourth survey in a series of surveys conducted in Greenland, Iceland and Norway financed by the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung. 

This Thursday on March the 10th at 13 pm (Greenwich Time), the results of the survey will be launched in a public webinar/seminar, and we kindly invite you to participate.

The report will be published online after the webinar.

Register for the event by clicking here.

Program

13.00-13.05:
Welcome: Gabriele Bauman, Head of the Nordic Countries Project, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung

13.05-13.20:
Presentation of main findings from the survey: Heini í Skorini, Associate Professor, University of the Faroe Islands

13.20-13.40
Feedback and comments: Rasmus Leander Nielsen, Professor, University of Greenland, and Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir, Professor, University of Iceland

13.40-14.00
Q & A