Denmark calls snap election amid Greenland tensions
Denmark will hold a parliamentary election on March 24, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced, seeking to build on rising support tied to her firm stance against renewed U.S. interest in Greenland, reports a Qazinform News Agency correspondent.
Frederiksen has spent recent months rallying European leaders in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s remarks about annexing the Arctic island. Opinion polls indicate that her assertive foreign policy has strengthened her popularity after months of domestic criticism over rising living costs and strain on welfare services.
“This will be a decisive election, because it will be in the next four years that we as Danes and as Europeans will really have to stand on our own feet,” Frederiksen said. “We need to define our relationship with the United States, and we must rearm to ensure peace on our continent. We must stick together in Europe, and we must secure the future of the Danish Commonwealth.”
The vote will test whether voters reward her international leadership or focus on domestic grievances. Denmark’s governing coalition unites the Social Democrats, the Liberal Party and the Moderates in a cross-partisan alliance formed in 2022. Polls suggest it may lose its parliamentary majority as traditional political divisions reemerge.
The Social Democrats secured 28% in the 2022 general election. Support later fell to 17% in December surveys but has rebounded to 22% following the Greenland dispute.
The government’s 2023 decision to abolish the Great Prayer Day holiday to fund higher defense spending sparked public discontent, though military investment remains broadly supported.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Donald Trump had floated the idea of sending “a great hospital boat” to Greenland to provide medical care to local residents.
