Denmark seems ready to join the EU’s common defense policy, becoming the last member of the bloc to join, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to reshape the landscape. security.
Polls released when polling stations closed showed that 69% of voters were in favor of removing the opt-out from the EU’s common security and defense policy (PCSD). Thirty-one percent of voters opposed the measure.
Wednesday’s referendum follows calls from non-aligned Nordic neighbors from Denmark, Finland and Sweden to join NATO last month.
Denmark, historically critical of the EU, secured exemptions from joining the PSDC and the euro in a 1993 referendum, but the country’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said it was time to change direction.
“Unfortunately, we expect a moment that will be even more unstable than what we are experiencing now,” Frederiksen said after voting. “I think it’s right for Europe, right for Denmark, right for our future.”
Frederiksen convened the referendum just two weeks after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, after reaching an agreement with most parties in the Danish parliament, and pledged to increase defense spending in the second round. % of GDP, according to NATO membership requirements, for 2033.
“NATO will, of course, remain our most important tool, but the EU offers us another to secure our defense in the east,” said Social Democrat defense spokesman Mogens Jensen. Eleven of Denmark’s 14 parties, which account for more than three-quarters of the seats in parliament, have urged voters to drop out.
“The world is changing, not in the right way. We must stand together and strengthen the cooperation that strengthens our security, “said Jakob Ellemann-Jensen, leader of the Liberal Opposition Party.
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Participation in EU defense policy would allow Denmark, a founding member of NATO, to take part in joint EU military operations, such as those in Somalia, Mali and Bosnia, and for Danish officials to stay in the room when EU colleagues discuss defense issues.
It would be seen in large part as a symbolic victory in Brussels, experts said. “Political importance will outweigh the military contribution,” said Kristian Soby Kristensen, a senior researcher at the Center for Military Studies at the University of Copenhagen.
Opponents of abandoning the opt-out argue that EU defense co-operation is hampered by excessive bureaucracy and inefficient decision-making, and that joint European defense would be at the expense of NATO. The polls opened at 8 a.m. local time, and a result is expected after 11 p.m. Wednesday.