Denmark overwhelmingly approved a new defence agreement that granted the US sweeping authority on Danish soil. The agreement gave the US “unhindered access” to Danish airbases.

Politicians and human rights experts criticised the agreement. It kept US troops in Denmark under US jurisdiction. It gave American troops access to airbases in Karup, Skrydstrup, and Aalborg. It also allowed US soldiers and military police to exercise authority over Danish civilians both at those locations and outside them.

The deal included the US Pituffik Space Base in northern Greenland, which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

If US soldiers committed crimes in Denmark, the US legal system would handle the punishment first. The agreement allowed the US to carry out military activities in and from Denmark. These included stationing personnel, storing military equipment, and conducting maintenance, training, and exercises.

Even though tensions between Denmark and the US had risen after Donald Trump pushed to acquire Greenland—and after reports said US intelligence agencies had been ordered to increase spying in Greenland—a broad majority in the Danish parliament (Folketinget) voted in favour of the agreement. A total of 94 MPs voted for the bill, and 11 voted against it.

Just before the vote, Unity List party leader Pelle Dragsted called the agreement “harmful to the country.”

He said, “It is an agreement that means that we will have areas in Denmark that are under American jurisdiction. Where Danish authorities cannot exercise control. And where mistreatment of prisoners can occur.” He added, “It is a gigantic failure towards the Danish population.”

The Biden administration signed the agreement in December 2023. Since Trump returned to office, relations between Copenhagen and Washington DC changed dramatically.

Some politicians said the agreement could risk Danish sovereignty or even violate the Danish constitution. The Danish government said it did not.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the situation between the two countries made it more important to maintain close ties. She said, “The problem is not too much involvement from the US in Europe. On the contrary, the risk is that the US will withdraw and move troops away or stop donations to Ukraine.”

At a consultation on Tuesday, Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said Danish authorities would have “primary safety responsibility both on and off the facilities covered by the agreement.”

The Danish Institute for Human Rights said the bill could allow US soldiers to stop demonstrations outside their bases. It said the bill would prevent Denmark from prosecuting them if they used excessive force.

Peter Vedel Kessing, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute for Human Rights, told The Guardian in May, “If the bill is passed and American soldiers carry out illegal acts in Denmark, it will be beyond Danish control and outside the reach of the Danish legal system to prosecute such actions.”