Denmark boosts air defence with biggest military order in history

Denmark has placed its largest-ever defence order, opting for European air defence systems over American alternatives, amid diplomatic tensions with the Trump administration over Greenland.

The Danish government announced that it would purchase the Franco-Italian SAMP-T NG long-range surface-to-air missile system and is considering medium-range systems from Norway (NASAMS), Germany (IRIS-T), and France (VL MICA). The total investment amounts to DKr58 billion ($9.1 billion) — the largest single defence procurement in Denmark’s history, Financial Times reports.

“It is not a rejection of Patriots. It’s a selection of what is best,” said Per Pugholm Olsen, head of the Danish Ministry of Defence’s acquisitions office. He cited the higher cost and longer delivery times associated with the US-made Patriot system as key factors in the decision.

The move comes as European air defence priorities have sharpened following a serious security breach: 19 Russian drones reportedly entered Polish airspace on September 10, prompting NATO to scramble fighter jets — the first such direct engagement since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Some analysts, however, question the cost-efficiency of using advanced systems against low-cost drones, calling for cheaper, scalable defence alternatives.

Relations between Copenhagen and Washington have been strained ever since US President Donald Trump publicly expressed interest in buying Greenland, a sovereign territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. Trump administration figures, including Vice President JD Vance, Donald Trump Jr., and the recently assassinated influencer Charlie Kirk, have all visited the island this year to voice support for US interests there.

Despite this backdrop, Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen downplayed potential fallout from the decision. “I have repeatedly said that we want a strengthened bond with the US, so no, I am not,” he said, adding that there was “a really long waiting time for Patriots.”

Denmark, which has ordered 27 US F-35 jets (17 delivered), remains committed to defence spending, with Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen urging the military to “spend, spend, spend” in response to Russian aggression in Europe.

By Vafa Guliyeva