Media: Leaked document reveals scaling back of Denmark’s Arctic armament

The Arctic is a top priority for Danish armaments. Or what? A confidential meeting document tells of bumps in the road in the ongoing negotiations on defense in the Arctic, writes TV2.

New billion-dollar Arctic ships, better port facilities in Nuuk, an upgrade in Kangerlussuaq, satellite surveillance and a strengthened and larger surveillance apparatus.

There has been a lot of arm wrangling this year when it comes to the build-up of the Danish Armed Forces in the Arctic.

But a secret document from the Danish government’s coordination committee, which TV2 has obtained, shows that the Danish government’s major armament plans in Greenland and the Arctic have shrunk considerably.

Three weeks ago, the Danish Minister of Defense, Troels Lund Poulsen, had otherwise received the green light to arm up to 22.5 billion kroner until 2033, writes TV2.

But according to TV2 and several of the sources they have spoken to, an agreement is now being prepared that primarily focuses on where the future warships will be built.

One billion kroner has been allocated for a shipyard where the ships’ various parts will be assembled, the leaked document states.

– With the reservation that there may be surprises in a political process until an agreement is adopted, it appears that a larger part of the Arctic investments will be postponed, writes TV2.

Sium selection created confusion

According to TV2’s sources, the reason for the uproar is last weekend’s election for the chairmanship of Siumut.

As you know, Aleqa Hammond ended up winning the chairmanship from Vivian Motzfeldt.

And although Vivian Motzfeldt (S) remains the Greenlandic Minister for Foreign Affairs despite the election defeat in Siumut, uncertainty has apparently arisen in the Danish government in connection with the contested election about who they should negotiate defense with.

We still have to wait and see how Chapter 2 of the agreement for defense in the Arctic and the North Atlantic ends up looking – and how big or small the investment will be.

Negotiations are still ongoing.