UK-Danish bilateral relations
The UK has a close, strong relationship with Denmark. We share the same values and take the same approach to many international issues.
We work closely together on foreign policy. Danish armed forces fought alongside British forces in operations in Iraq and we continue this cooperation today in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. We are also likeminded on other pressing foreign policy challenges like Iran, Burma and the reform of international institutions. We work closely together on counter-terrorism issues, supporting each other by sharing best practice and experience. We both understand the importance of international development: Denmark has exceeded the UN target of contributing a minimum of 0.7% of Gross National Income to development assistance and the UK is on course to reach the 0.7% target by 2013.
This year, in the run up to the UN Conference of the Parties 15th meeting (COP15) which will be hosted by Denmark in Copenhagen in December, we are focussed on helping the Danes to reach an ambitious post-2012 climate change agreement. We both realise the importance of limiting global warming to two degrees centigrade and will work tirelessly together to try to achieve this.
We are also bound together by our membership of the EU and NATO. In both fora we often find ourselves on the same side of an argument. In the EU, we have a similar vision for the future of the Union and we take the same pragmatic approach to reforming the Common Agricultural Policy and to dealing with the financial crisis. In NATO, the Danes are one of our closest allies in our quest to ensure NATO's resources are even more tightly focused on today's challenges, such as bringing security and stability to Afghanistan.
And we have strong trade and investment links between our two countries. The UK is Denmark's third largest export market after Germany and Sweden. Danish companies invest around $100 bn in the UK market each year and over 1,100 Danish companies are based in the UK.
Useful links
No. 10 Downing Street
Danish Prime Minister
