...
By Ellie Cook
Senior Defense Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Denmark will hold elections next month in the wake of tensions with the U.S. over Greenland that have united European countries and galvanized support for the current Danish government.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Thursday the parliamentary elections would take place on March 24 and would be a "decisive" vote.
"It will be in the next four years that we as Danes and as Europeans will really have to stand on our own feet," Frederiksen said, in remarks reported by the Reuters news agency. "We need to define our relationship with the United States, and we must rearm to ensure peace on our continent."
Read More on World
Approval ratings for the current government in Copenhagen surged after President Donald Trump and his administration vowed to take control of Greenland, a semi-autonomous part of Denmark. Although the current parliamentary term was set to expire no later than the end of October, the timing of the election is widely seen as a way for the government to capitalize on this swell of support.
...
The U.S. desire to acquire Greenland threatens the very basis of trans-Atlantic relations as they have stood since the end of World War II. Earlier this year, the White House for weeks refused to rule out using military action to achieve its goal, deeply shaking European confidence in the U.S.' role as NATO's protector.
The Danish government and Greenlandic officials hit back at Washington with increasing force, and while Trump declared last month he had agreed a "framework" of a deal for the territory, updates on negotiations have been scarce.
Washington has repeatedly said the U.S. is the only country that can counter Russian and Chinese ambitions for Greenland, although Danish and European officials have played down the threat Moscow and Beijing pose to the territory in the near future.
The strategic Arctic island is key for detecting and intercepting long-range missiles bound for the U.S. and Canada, as well as boasting sought-after mineral resources.
The U.S. has also pushed European countries and Canada to dramatically increase defense spending and lean far less on U.S. forces for protection. NATO nations last year pledged to dedicate 5 percent of their GDP to the military and related costs within a decade, a huge jump from the levels of spending seen in recent decades.
Denmark said on Sunday the country would hit this target by the end of 2026, nine years ahead of NATO's 2035 target. Danish officials have said the spending is justified by the threat Russia poses to Denmark and Europe, the Ukraine war and the need to rearm quickly.
"Buy, buy, buy," Frederiksen said in February 2025. "There's only one thing that counts now and that is speed."
Frederiksen, a member of the center-left Social Democrats, has been in office since 2019 although a 2022 election brought a three-party coalition to power.
Polls from recent weeks show the Social Democrats could be on course to secure 22 percent of the vote, trailed in second place by the Green Left party, also known as Socialistisk Folkeparti or simply SF.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines