Denmark agrees massive defence spending to meet Nato target
Danish politicians have agreed to spend an additional 143 billion kroner on the country’s military over the next ten year, bringing the country up to NATO’s spending target for member nations from 2030.
Ten of Denmark's twelve parliamentary parties have agreed a ten-year defence spending plan which will see 143 billion kroner added to defence spending so that by 2030 the country meets the Nato target of spending 2 percent of GDP on defence.
Only the left-wing Red Green Alliance and Alternative parties were excluded from the deal, with neither party even invited to the negotiations because of their opposition to meeting Nato's defence spending target.
The new framework which will see increased conscription in the armed forces, but for now military service will not be compulsory for women.
Denmark's acting defence minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, said, however that a decision to make military service compulsory for women could be taken as early as this autumn.
"We have made a broad agreement in which we say that we want more equality. We will then discuss the concrete model later in 2023," he told news wire Ritzau after the defence agreement was announced, saying it will take time to clarify how to provide capacity for more conscripts .
"In the autumn, we will present a concrete model for how to achieve equality in conscription," The Social Democrats' defence spokesperson, Simon Kollerup, said.
Only one of the ten parties is opposed to the conscription of women, the Danish Democrats, with the party's leader Inger Støjberg citing the "physiological differences" between men and women.
But the Conservative spokesperson Rasmus Jarlov said that parties were in agreement over introducing a longer period of national service.
“I would like to state that I think this is a very ambitious agreement,” Poulsen meanwhile said of the military spending plan at a press briefing.
The agreement provides for a ten-year spending framework in which specific decisions on matters like investment in hardware can be made at a later time.
A renewed approach to Denmark’s defence budget was justified by the parties by pointing to changing requirements of the country as a Nato member, as well as technological advances.
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Ten of Denmark's twelve parliamentary parties have agreed a ten-year defence spending plan which will see 143 billion kroner added to defence spending so that by 2030 the country meets the Nato target of spending 2 percent of GDP on defence.
Only the left-wing Red Green Alliance and Alternative parties were excluded from the deal, with neither party even invited to the negotiations because of their opposition to meeting Nato's defence spending target.
The new framework which will see increased conscription in the armed forces, but for now military service will not be compulsory for women.
Denmark's acting defence minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, said, however that a decision to make military service compulsory for women could be taken as early as this autumn.
"We have made a broad agreement in which we say that we want more equality. We will then discuss the concrete model later in 2023," he told news wire Ritzau after the defence agreement was announced, saying it will take time to clarify how to provide capacity for more conscripts .
"In the autumn, we will present a concrete model for how to achieve equality in conscription," The Social Democrats' defence spokesperson, Simon Kollerup, said.
Only one of the ten parties is opposed to the conscription of women, the Danish Democrats, with the party's leader Inger Støjberg citing the "physiological differences" between men and women.
But the Conservative spokesperson Rasmus Jarlov said that parties were in agreement over introducing a longer period of national service.
“I would like to state that I think this is a very ambitious agreement,” Poulsen meanwhile said of the military spending plan at a press briefing.
The agreement provides for a ten-year spending framework in which specific decisions on matters like investment in hardware can be made at a later time.
A renewed approach to Denmark’s defence budget was justified by the parties by pointing to changing requirements of the country as a Nato member, as well as technological advances.
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