Denmark to buy ‘long-range’ weapons amid Russia ‘paradigm shift’

In an effort to deter Russia, Denmark’s prime minister has announced that it will first purchase long-range, high-precision weapons.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticized Moscow in a staunch rebuke on Wednesday, saying that Russia would “present a threat to Denmark for years to come,” despite the absence of any immediate threat of an attack.

She said, “The defence forces will be able to hit targets at long range with these weapons, and we will also be able to neutralize enemy missile threats,” adding that the decision represented a “paradigm shift in Danish defence policy.”

Troels Lund Poulsen, the minister of defense, stated that the government would work to develop missiles and drones, but he would not specify which weapons.

Following Denmark’s largest arms purchase to date, which included 58 billion Danish crowns ($9.2 billion) of European-made air defense systems, came the announcement. After decades of cuts, Frederiksen urged the military to “buy, buy, buy,” when moving forward with a 50 billion crown ($7.9 billion) increase in military spending over the next two years.

On Wednesday, it was unclear exactly how much money Denmark intended to spend on long-range weapons.

Frederiksen has spoken out against Donald Trump’s repeated claims that he wants to annex Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory, in addition to Russia.

After a public broadcaster reported that three US citizens had allegedly tried to influence Greenlanders’ opinions in secret, Denmark summoned the country’s charge of affairs there last month.

Frederiksen said at the time, “Any interference in Danish and Greenlandic democracy’s internal affairs is unacceptable,” stressing that “the Americans have not clearly rejected” the report.

Billions travel to PURL to enter Ukraine.

Through the new Priority Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), a mechanism that allows NATO nations to finance the transfer of US-sourced weapons and technology to Ukraine, the country is currently hoping to see a significant increase in its weapons supply.

By October, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine anticipates receiving about $3.5 billion in PURL weapons, with Western air defense systems being the first US weapons to be delivered.

The expansion comes as a result of ongoing Russian attacks in southern Ukraine, including the Zaporizhzhia city, where at least one person was killed and 18 others were injured earlier this week. In the city of Kharkiv in the northeast of the nation, two people were killed, and two more were hurt.

According to Zelenskyy, Russia has so far this month launched nearly 3,500 drones and nearly 190 missiles against Ukraine.

The president, who stated on X Wednesday that Russia “lacked the strength for large-scale offensives,” believes they have lost “so much manpower” in recent fighting, has maintained a sense of confidence.