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Denmark in International Organizations · Diplomacy and International Relations

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  Welcome to Diplomacy and International Relations by
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  Bastian Freiburg. Great to be here.
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  Before we really dive in, just a quick note.
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  The content for this deep dive was generated with assistance
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  from artificial intelligence, but everything has been
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  thoroughly verified for accuracy by Bastian Fribourg.
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  And today we're really focusing in on Denmark.
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  We'll be looking at its role in international relations, world
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  politics and importantly, how all that connects back to its
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  own domestic political scene. Exactly.
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  And to get a good grip on this, we've pulled together quite a
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  few sources. We've got the Danish ministry
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  defense agreement on boosting defense spending, There's
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  Wikipedia's overview of the Kingdom of Denmark's Arctic
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  policy, and an analysis from DIS.
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  That's the Danish Institute for International Studies, looking
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  at Denmark's time on the UN Security Council.
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  We're also drawing on a brief from the European Parliament's
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  think tank about Denmark's climate action strategy, a paper
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  from Columbia International Affairs Online looking at
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  Denmark and the WTO. The World Trade Organization,
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  right? The Danish Institute for Human
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  Rights, 20, 23 report and Denmark's own development
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  cooperation strategy. The world we share.
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  So our goal here is really to weave these different threads
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  together. We want to give you, especially
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  if you follow international affairs and Danish politics, a
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  really solid understanding of how Denmark operates out there
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  on the world stage. Sounds good.
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  Where should we start? OK.
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  Let's start with something that definitely signals a shift the
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  increased defense spending. Right, The Danish Ministry of
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  Defense, they've agreed to allocate over 3% of GDP to
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  defense. That's for 2025 and 2020. 6 / 3%
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  that's well, that's quite a jump, isn't it?
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  It is. It's a notable increase.
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  And like you said, it really suggests a potential change in
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  how Denmark sees its security role.
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  You know, perhaps moving away from maybe a more reserved
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  stance towards something more assertive in regional security.
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  And the timing here is important too, considering everything
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  going on globally. Absolutely.
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  You have to see it in that context.
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  It has implicated for Denmark's relationships, its role within
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  NATO, for instance. OK, let's let's pivot now to a
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  region where Denmark's role is really unique because of its
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  structure, the Arctic. Yes, the Kingdom of Denmark.
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  It's fascinating, really. You've got Denmark proper, which
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  isn't in the Arctic itself, but then you have Greenland, very
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  much Arctic territory, and the Faroe Islands in the North
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  Atlantic. And interestingly, despite
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  having all this land mass in the Arctic, the Kingdom actually has
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  one of the smallest Arctic populations.
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  And a key tension you see playing out is Denmark wanting
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  to be influential in the Arctic, but always needing to navigate
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  Greenland's own aspirations for more autonomy or even
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  independence. It's a really interesting
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  dynamic. Yeah, that sounds like a
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  constant balancing act. So, Copenhagen, Nuke, Torcham,
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  they have their own perspectives, but they share
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  interests in the Arctics, challenges and, well,
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  opportunities too. Exactly, Especially with the
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  Arctic changing so fast and getting so much global
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  attention. And Denmark's policy isn't made
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  in a bubble, No, it's heavily shaped by memberships in places
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  like the Arctic Council, the Nordic Council, the EU, NATO,
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  the International Maritime Organization.
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  All these influence its approach.
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  And internally, within the Kingdom, Greenland's role is
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  significant. You mentioned resources.
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  That's right. Since 2009, Greenland has had
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  control over its mineral resources.
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  So decisions about, say, mining exploration, they're primarily
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  made in nuke. That adds, you know, another
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  layer of complexity. OK.
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  So what are the main focus areas for Denmark's Arctic policy
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  then? Well, you're looking at
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  Environmental Protection, obviously crucial.
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  There's the military presence, the Joint Arctic Command is
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  based in Nuke, then there's governing those potential
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  mineral resources we mentioned and managing the fisheries which
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  are vital for the Faroe Islands especially.
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  And this isn't just some sudden issue for Denmark, is it?
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  I remember seeing their 2023 foreign policy strategy really
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  emphasize the Arctic's geopolitical importance.
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  Absolutely. It's central Denmark wants to be
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  a major voice in the Arctic Council, presenting this unified
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  front as one Kingdom. But that's tricky with
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  Greenland's aspirations. Exactly as the wiki PDA source
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  notes, that ambition is constantly bumping up against
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  the political reality in Greenland, where many
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  politicians and people are pushing for greater self
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  determination. A delicate balance indeed.
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  Are there areas where collaboration within the Kingdom
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  works well on Arctic issues? Oh yes, there's definitely a
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  collaborative approach on things like health and social
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  sustainability in Greenland. They draw on Nordic expertise,
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  partner with places like Canada's Nunavut on shared
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  challenges and the Nordic Council is also involved,
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  particularly on gender issues in the Arctic.
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  So Denmark kind of acts as a bridge between the EU and the
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  Arctic. Main because Greenland is Arctic
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  and Denmark is in the EU, Denmark becomes this key link
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  helping the EU engage in that region and.
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  Speaking of the EU, there was that big shift recently on
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  defense cooperation, wasn't there?
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  Yes, a major one. The war in Ukraine was really
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  the catalyst. Prime Minister met.
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  Frederickson pushed for a referendum on Denmark's long
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  standing defense. Opt out from the EU.
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  And the opt out ended. It did.
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  In June 2022, a majority voted to end it.
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  It signals A deeper commitment to the E US common security and
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  defense policy. You saw similar shifts in
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  thinking in other Nordic countries too around that time.
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  Right. And looking ahead, Denmark's
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  taking on a big role in the Arctic Council soon.
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  That's right, they're set to take over the chairmanship from
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  Norway in 2025. That'll give them a big platform
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  to shape the agenda for a couple of years.
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  OK, now we can't talk Arctic without talking economics,
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  right? It's not just geopolitics.
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  No, definitely not. The potential for extracting
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  gas, oil, minerals, gold, zinc, those crucial rare earth
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  elements. It's a big part of the economic
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  picture up there. But with environmental concerns.
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  Absolutely. The Danish Foreign Ministry
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  consistently stresses that any exploitation has to be
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  environmentally and socially sustainable, with strong
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  regulations in place. Which seems vital given how
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  fragile the Arctic ecosystem is. And for Greenland and the
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  Pharaohs specifically, their traditional resources are huge.
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  Huge fish and ocean mammals. They're the backbone.
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  About 85% of Greenland's exports, maybe 90 percent for
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  the Pharaohs. So sustainable management of
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  fisheries is paramount, and that means working closely with
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  international bodies. Ices for scientific advice, N AM
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  MCO for marine mammals, any AFC for fisheries management, the
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  IWC for whaling. It's all about following those
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  international rules. Makes sense.
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  And with climate change potentially opening up routes
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  like the Northeast Passage, could that mean more shipping
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  activity? Exactly.
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  More shipping, more sailing. That could bring new economic
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  opportunities, especially for the Faroe Islands.
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  Both Greenland and the Pharaohs are looking to attract foreign
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  investment, but they have to do it while sticking to WTO rules
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  and their EU obligations, since the Kingdom is part of both.
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  OK, quite a complex picture in the Arctic.
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  Let's shift gears now to another international forum.
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  UN Security Council Denmark had a term there recently.
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  Yes they did. And during that time their focus
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  was very much on safeguarding international law.
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  They also pushed for the Security Council itself to be
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  more accountable, more effective and more representative.
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  Even without knowing their specific thematic priorities
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  from our sources, just being there as a smaller nation seems
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  significant. It really does.
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  It underscores Denmark's commitment to that rules based
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  international order we hear so much about.
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  Right now, the European Parliament think tank also
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  looked at Denmark's climate strategy.
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  What can we glean from that? Well, the specific details
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  aren't in the snippets we have, but the fact that EP is
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  analyzing it tells you something.
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  It shows Denmark's role and ambitions on climate change are
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  seen as significant on the European and probably global
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  stage. We can probably infer it
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  involves ambitious emission cuts and promoting a green transition
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  given their other commitments. OK, which leads us nicely into
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  Denmark and the World Trade Organization, the WTO.
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  This sounds like another area where global rules meet national
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  priorities. It really is.
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  And Denmark's approach here kind of reflects the wider story of
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  globalization. The WTO, remember it came out of
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  the Datamedia agreements, but the 1994 version created a much
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  more formal international organization.
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  Right. Not just an agreement.
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  Exactly. And the scope widened way beyond
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  just tariffs, you know, taxes on imports.
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  It now covers non tariff barriers, think regulations,
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  quotas and even delves into social issues like Labor
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  Standards, Environmental Protection, sometimes called the
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  red and green issues in trade. And adding those social issues
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  caused quite a stir, didn't it, between different groups of
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  countries. Oh, absolutely.
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  Developed countries often want to link trade deals to these
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  standards. You know, to prevent things like
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  eco dumping or social dumping. Basically competing based on
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  lower environmental or Labor Standards.
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  Makes sense from their perspective.
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  But for developing countries, meeting those standards can be a
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  real challenge. They might see it as a barrier
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  to trade, or argue that their development level needs to be
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  considered. So they often resist making
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  trade conditional on these things.
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  So where does Denmark fit in this debate?
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  Does it line up strongly with, say, the US on pushing these
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  standards? Interestingly, the analysis
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  suggests not entirely. Denmark isn't seen as a staunch
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  ally of the US in forcefully pushing social clauses.
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  While Denmark generally supports having a broad WTO agenda and
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  backs positive ways to promote social concerns, it seems to do
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  so with a real sensitivity to the specific situations in
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  developing countries. It's a more balanced approach
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  perhaps. That sounds very Danish, trying
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  to find that balance. Does the WTO Agreement itself
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  acknowledge these broader goals? It does, yeah.
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  The preamble tries to strike that balance, promoting
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  liberalized trade but also acknowledging goals like social
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  welfare and sustainable development.
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  It reflects that idea of embedded liberalism.
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  Free trade is good, but it needs international cooperation and
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  allows for governments to step in domestically for social
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  reasons. And even the older gehed had
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  some exceptions for social issues.
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  Yes, Article XX have got allowed exceptions for things like
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  protecting the environment or public health.
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  How those exceptions are interpreted has evolved, though.
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  Cases like the famous shrimp turtle case showed the WTO
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  panels becoming more open to environmental justifications for
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  trade restrictions under certain conditions.
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  Within Denmark itself, is there general agreement on being part
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  of the WTO? By and large, yes.
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  Most parties in the full coding the parliament support WTO
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  membership. They see the benefits of freer
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  trade and appreciate the push for more transparency in the
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  system. But not everyone.
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  No, There's one notable exception, the unity list and
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  heads listen. They strongly oppose the WTO.
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  Why is that? Their view comes from more
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  unilateral list and maybe post materialist values.
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  They worry that WTO rules could restrict Denmark's ability to
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  set its own high standards for things like Product Safety or
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  Environmental Protection. National sovereignty concerns,
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  basically. OK, so familiar tension there
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  between global rules and national control.
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  Exactly. The other major parties, Social
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  Democrats, conservatives, liberals and so on, are
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  generally pro WTO, but they might differ a bit on how much
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  emphasis to place on embedding those social and environment
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  concerns within the trade framework.
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  It reflects that ongoing balancing act.
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  Right, let's shift focus now inwards to the domestic human
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  rights picture in Denmark. Based on the Danish Institute
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  for Human Rights 2023 report. It sounds like a mixed bag.
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  Strong foundations but areas needing work.
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  That's a good way to put it. The report starts by saying
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  Denmark generally does uphold the rule of law.
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  And it points out that the European Court of Human Rights
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  usually rejects deportation cases against Denmark,
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  suggesting the courts are doing their homework on human rights.
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  But there are concerns. Yes, several areas are
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  highlighted. The growing impact of
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  digitalization is 1 the spread of misinformation, especially
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  via AI, and quite worryingly, signs of self censorship in
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  public debate. Self censorship, people afraid
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  to speak out. Exactly.
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  The report mentions data showing a fair number of people hold
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  back from expressing opinions publicly.
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  They fear things like threats, violence, negative reactions
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  from employers, or even government surveillance.
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  That's obviously not healthy for open debate in a democracy.
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  No, definitely not. The report also mentioned
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  specific laws like the Quran law that caused quite a stir
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  internationally. It did.
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  This law prohibits the improper treatment of writings that
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  religious communities consider significant.
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  It's faced criticism, including from the UN.
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  The main concerns are that it might be too vague and could be
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  a disproportionate restriction on freedom of expression,
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  potentially conflicting with Article 19 of the International
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  Covenant on Civil and Political. Rights and there were other
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  relevant court cases mentioned about flags and depiction of the
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  Prime Minister. Right.
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  Those cases show the courts grappling with where exactly the
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  lines of free speech should be drawn in Denmark today.
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  It's an ongoing process balancing values and legal
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  precedent. OK.
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  The report also talked a lot about AI and digitalization.
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  Denmark's very digital, right? But that brings challenges.
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  Hugely digital. And yes, the report stresses the
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  need to balance all the benefits of that with protecting citizens
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  rights. There are concerns about the
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  power of big tech companies, the risk of AI spreading mis and
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  disinformation, and even the government potentially losing
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  track of how data is used when authorities employ AI for things
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  like case management. And it's not just future risks,
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  there are present problems too. Yes, the report points out that
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  a significant chunk of the population feels left behind
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  digitally, struggling to access public services online.
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  And there was that example of the faulty IT system for welfare
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  payments, the Kentucky system, which actually led to people
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  losing out on their rights because the tech wasn't up to
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  scratch. So the report recommends more
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  regulation and raises flags about things like facial
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  recognition. It does.
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  It suggests regulating how tech giants use AI to protect
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  information quality, and it specifically notes a lack of
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  clear rules in Denmark for police using facial recognition.
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  That raises big privacy concerns, obviously, and could
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  impact freedom of expression and assembly too.
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  Especially with the EU bringing in its new AI Act, though
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  Denmark has that opt out on justice and Home Affairs.
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  Right, which complicates things, and the report actually sites a
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  European Court of Human Rights ruling emphasizing that facial
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  recognition is a major privacy intrusion and needs really
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  strong legal safeguards. OK, let's move to prisons and
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  detention. What were the key human rights
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  concerns there? Well, the basic point is that
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  even when someone is imprisoned, their fundamental human rights
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  still apply even if liberty is restricted, right?
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  A major concern highlighted is pretrial detention.
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  Denmark uses it relatively often and for quite long periods
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  compared to other Nordic countries.
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  And that can be problematic. Yes, the UN Committee Against
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  Torture has raised concerns. They worry about the limited use
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  of alternatives to detention, restrictions on detainees
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  contact with the outside world, and that the amount of time some
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  spend isolated in their cells could effectively amount to
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  solitary confinement. Wow.
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  Other issues in prisons. Overcrowding and staff shortages
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  are mentioned as increasing the risk of human rights violations,
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  and that plan to rent prison places in Kosovo is noted as
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  lacking a clear legal basis. But despite these domestic and
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  UN concerns, the European Court of Human Rights generally
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  upholds Danish deportation decisions.
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  Generally yes, if the Danish courts have done a thorough
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  human rights assessment first. There are exceptions, of course,
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  for people with long residency, less serious crimes, or severe
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  mental health issues. And the report also outlined
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  what the Danish Institute for Human Rights itself does.
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  Yeah, it covers their work in 2023, responding to government
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  consultations, publishing analysis, doing public outreach
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  and advising the government and parliament on human rights
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  issues. OK, let's shift outwards again
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  for our final section looking at Denmark's big picture strategy
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  for development cooperation, the world we share.
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  What's the main thrust of that? Well, the core aim is pretty
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  ambitious. It's about preventing and
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  fighting poverty, inequality, conflict, displacement and
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  irregular migration by creating hope, opportunities and building
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  societies that are both just and resilient.
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  It's explicitly linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals,
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  the SDGS, and the Paris Agreement on climate change.
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  And what principles guide this strategy?
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  It clearly states the guiding principles are democratic
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  values, human rights, protecting the vulnerable and gender
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  equality. And the overall vision?
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  The vision is for a more secure, sustainable world without
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  poverty, and the way to get there is through international
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  cooperation, building those just and resilient societies, using
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  the SU, GS and Paris Agreement as sort of guiding lights.
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  OK, does it lay out specific objectives?
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  It does 4 main ones. First, prevent poverty,
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  fragility, conflict, violence, and create sustainable
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  alternatives to irregular migration and displacement.
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  Second, take international leadership on emission
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  reductions, the green transition, and access to clean
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  energy. Third, create hope and help more
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  people better, especially where things are toughest.
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  And 4th Build dynamic partnerships for a changing
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  world. That sounds incredibly
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  comprehensive. It touches on so many
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  interconnected issues. It really does.
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  There's a big emphasis on tackling root causes, providing
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  humanitarian aid when needed, peace building, climate
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  adaptation, Environmental Protection, biodiversity and
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  ensuring that the green transition is socially just.
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  And Denmark sees itself playing a specific role in promoting
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  certain values. Yes, it positions itself as a
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  strong voice for democracy, human rights, especially for
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  girls, women and marginalized groups and upholding that rules
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  based international order we talked about earlier.
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  And things like gender equality and youth participation are key
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  threads. Absolutely.
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  The strategy stresses how interconnected everything is
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  climate change, poverty, displacement, and it plays to
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  Denmark's strengths in building partnerships with civil society,
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  businesses, public authorities and doing targeted cooperation
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  with other countries. So pulling all this together
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  from our sources, Denmark is clearly juggling a lot on the
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  international stage. Defense.
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  The Arctic Trade. Human rights at home.
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  Global Development. Yes, it's navigating a really
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  complex world, trying to find that sweet spot between its own
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  national interests and its wider commitments to cooperation,
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  human rights and sustainable development.
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  And you could really see how domestic politics and these
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  international obligations constantly interact and chase
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  Denmark's foreign policy. It creates opportunities but
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  also real challenges. Which leads to some interesting
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  questions for you, our listener, especially if you follow Danish
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  and international politics. Think about this.
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  What are the real ripple effects of Denmark boosting its defense
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  spending? How does it change relationships
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  with neighbors or its role in NATO?
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  And reflect on that tension we saw between national sovereignty
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  and international human rights standards.
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  Like with the Quran law or pretrial detention debates.
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  How does a country balance those?
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  Good question. And finally, Denmark wants to
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  lead on the green transition and focus on fragile States and its
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  aid strategy. What impact could that actually
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  have on global efforts? Can a country like Denmark
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  really move the needle? Lots to think about there.
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  Well, thank you for joining us for this deep dive into
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  Denmark's place in the world. It's been a fascinating
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  discussion. If you found this exploration
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