According to the latest polls, about 65 percent of Danes will vote for European defense cooperation. Still, analysts are cautious in their forecasts, as Danes have more often voted against more European integration.
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has advised voters to vote in favor of a joint defense policy. “At a time when we have to fight for the security of Europe, we need to be more connected to our neighbours.” Eleven of the fourteen political parties in Denmark are also in favour.
In 1992, the Danes narrowly rejected the Maastricht Treaty. In order to get Denmark on board, the EU was granted a number of exceptional positions. For example, Denmark does not participate in the euro, the joint justice policy and defense policy.
Two weeks after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the government held a referendum on European defense cooperation. Frederiksen then also announced that he would increase the defense budget to 2 percent of the national product, as has been agreed within the military treaty organization NATO.