The Russian ambassador to Denmark is angry about Denmark's desire to possess cruise missiles, and this is what he said.

According to TV2, the Russian ambassador to Denmark, Vladimir Barbin, expressed his anger at Denmark after TV2 revealed details of a leaked memo that included a list of Danish defense targets, commenting that Denmark and NATO are the aggressors.

Denmark's desire to possess cruise missiles

The list included Denmark's desire to possess cruise missiles that can attack enemy targets and are not intended for defense. Conservative Party defense spokesman Rasmus Jarlov said that the Russian ambassador's description of Denmark and NATO as the aggressor was "very funny." He added that Russia has capabilities in the Russian city of Kaliningrad that can attack Denmark with missiles, fighter jets, and possibly nuclear weapons as well, and therefore it is ridiculous to call Denmark aggressive, according to the Conservative spokesman.

According to TV2, up to 87 billion Danish kroner has been allocated to so-called “primary capabilities,” which include priority building, air defense, naval capabilities and compulsory conscription (or compulsory national service), which Conservative Party defense chief Rasmus Jarlov believed should have been allocated even before the war in Ukraine.

A prominent military expert: The decision is political, and Russia must carefully consider how to deal with it.

Kristian Sobhi Christensen, a senior researcher at the Center for Military Studies at the University of Copenhagen, stated that he was not surprised by the Russian ambassador's criticism. Christensen emphasized that the decision to acquire cruise missiles for the Danish armed forces is ultimately a political one, and therefore Danish politicians must carefully consider how Russian defense will respond to the increased strength of Danish defense: “This does not mean that Denmark should not acquire them; it only means that cruise missiles are weapons in a higher strategic category than Denmark usually operates, and the only important thing is to make the decision with your eyes open and to be aware of what you are investing in.”.

Internal memo provisions regarding the upcoming defense settlement

This is a list of items from the internal memo from the Ministry of Defense that outlines the elements of the upcoming defense settlement, according to TV2:

The memo is unclassified but "for official use":

• A growing threat from Russia resulting from the war in Ukraine.
• An estimate of accumulated defense spending during the settlement period of 130 billion Danish kroner (with regular and equally distributed increases for the coming years).
• Denmark is expected to face pressure to increase defense spending beyond 2% of GDP this summer.
• A major investment project in soldiers and weapons amounts to 87 billion Danish kroner.
• The need for investments in extended conscription, recruitment and retention of soldiers, increased cybersecurity, veterans' efforts, green transition, and more.
• Political dilemmas regarding future defense policy priorities.
• Working towards the next ten-year defense settlement.
  The memo was drafted in November 2022, after the general election, but before the new government took office.