Author profile

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson is a professor of economics at the University of Akureyri, Iceland. He served as a specialist and co-ordinator with the World Bank Group in Washington DC from 1990 to 1995, at the World Bank office in Riga from 1999 to 2003 and in its Hanoi office from 2003 to 2006.

Drinking the blood of Ukraine: east-west competition for a country in crisis

The bizarre recent phone conversation between the president of the US and his counterpart in Ukraine returned to the public mind a neglected country with a frozen conflict.

Iceland Alone and Latvia Captured

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson

Two small countries, Iceland and Latvia, were severely affected during the global crisis in 2008. Iceland was the first to be hit and Latvia the

Economic Austerity And Outward Migration

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson

Since independence in 1991 the Baltic states have implemented neoliberal economic policies with weak social systems and income and wealth distribution that is among the

Exit, Brexit, Voice And Loyalty

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson

When thinking about the state of affairs in Europe, including post-crisis developments and Brexit, Albert Hirschman’s classic book Exit, Voice and Loyalty comes to mind.

Small States Under Pressure

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson

It is not always easy to be a small state in a global world. Many small states seek shelter, some by building alliances with larger

Baltic Austerity And Euro Area Contagion

Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson

I lived in Riga, the Latvian capital, from 1999 to 2003 just before the Baltic States became European Union member states in 2004. EU membership