Latest news with #TroelsLundPoulsen
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Denmark announces nearly $600 million in military aid to Ukraine
Denmark has prepared its 26th military aid package for Ukraine, worth 4 billion Danish kroner (approximately $598 million), the Danish Defense Ministry announced on May 17. The package includes additional artillery and shells via the Czech ammunition initiative as well as equipment for fighter jets, the ministry said. A portion of the funds will also go towards increasing training capacity for Ukrainian forces. "Unfortunately, Ukraine's need for help and support has not diminished. I am happy and proud that we can once again allocate funds for donations that will make a difference on the battlefield in both the short and long term," Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said. Denmark's latest military aid package is financed under the country's Ukraine Fund and the European Peace Facility (EPF). The assistance covers the years 2025-2028. The additional funds to the Czech initiative will allow Ukraine to better plan for a stable supply of ammunition, the ministry said. "Denmark is doing what we can to give Ukraine the best possible hand both on the battlefield and in the negotiating room," Danish Foreign Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen said. Denmark has pioneered efforts to support Ukraine by investing in its defense industry, creating the so-called "Danish model" of purchasing arms for Kyiv from Ukrainian producers. Copenhagen has provided around $9.8 billion in military aid under its Ukraine Fund for the years 2023-2028. Read also: Ukraine war latest: Russia launches record 273-drone attack on Ukraine ahead of planned Trump-Putin call We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Denmark announces long-term military aid package for Ukraine worth US$628m
Denmark's Ministry of Defence has unveiled the details of its 26th military aid package for Ukraine, totalling approximately DKK 4.2 billion (about US$628.4 million). Source: Danish Ministry of Defence, as reported by European Pravda Details: The 26th package, which is planned for the period 2025 to 2028, is funded by Denmark's Ukraine Fund and the EU's European Peace Facility. Under the package, Ukraine will receive additional artillery systems and shells financed as part of the Czech-led ammunition procurement initiative. The Danish Defence Ministry stated that additional funding allocated to the Czech-led initiative in 2025 could finance another batch of artillery shells, helping Ukraine ensure stable artillery ammunition supplies. In addition, Ukraine will receive equipment for combat aircraft, expanded training support and other forms of assistance. "Unfortunately, Ukraine's need for aid and support has not diminished," said Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen. "I am pleased and proud that we can again provide funding for assistance that will make a difference on the battlefield both in the short and long term." Denmark has allocated a total of 66.1 billion kroner for military aid to Kyiv under the Ukraine Fund for the years 2023-2028. Background: The previous, 25th military aid package – valued at US$970 million – was announced by Denmark in early April. In early May, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed further investments in Ukraine's defence industry with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Denmark receives four more F-35s; half of fleet now home after delays
PARIS — Denmark received four more F-35 fighter jets on Thursday, with more than half of the country's ordered fleet of stealth aircraft now stationed on Danish soil, after delivery had been delayed as manufacturer Lockheed Martin struggled to implement an upgrade for the plane. The four jets joined the fighter wing at Skrydstrup air base after a delivery flight from the Lockheed Martin factories in Texas via the Azores, bringing the number of repatriated F35s to 15, the Danish Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Friday. The country has ordered 27 of the fighters, of which six are stationed at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona for training. The remaining six aircraft that will complete the order are scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2026, the defense ministry said. 'With the arrival of the four aircraft yesterday, we have taken another step towards building up the combat capability of the F-35 aircraft,' said Maj. Gen. Jan Dam, the commander of the Royal Danish Air Force. Lockheed Martin deliveries of F-35 jets were delayed last year due to issues with the so-called Technology Refresh 3 upgrade, or TR-3. That left Denmark scrambling for options to meet F-35 rollout milestones and expand its locally based fleet beyond four aircraft, eventually prompting a decision in June to fly the country's training aircraft home. After the Minister of Defence had to inform the government last year that the delivery delays could affect the F-35 program milestones, 'the outlook now looks different,' the MoD said. Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen told business newspaper Borsen in March that he wanted to order more F-35 jets, despite threats by U.S. President Donald Trump targeting the Danish autonomous territory of Greenland, with the minister saying Denmark is too small to operate several types of fighter jets. The Danish Air Force has started to use the F-35 to take over some air-policing missions from the country's aging F-16 fleet, with the new jets flying their first mission to intercept a Russian military aircraft over the Baltic Sea in late March. The country plans to phase out the F-16 for air defense by the end of 2025, according to the MoD. Danish F-35s took part in the NATO exercise Ramstein Flag from March 31 to April 11, their first participation in a major exercise, operating from the air base at Skrydstrup. Denmark has pledged to donate F-16s to Ukraine as part of a coalition with the Netherlands and Norway.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Denmark to spend €830 million on Ukrainian defense on behalf of EU
AMSTERDAM — Denmark will allocate €830 million ($935 million) to the Ukrainian defense industry in 2025 on behalf of the European Union, using windfall profits from frozen Russian assets to buy Ukraine-made weapons. The Danish Ministry of Defence and the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, signed an agreement giving Denmark the role as implementing actor for the disbursement of a large portion of the windfall profits this year, the ministry said in a statement on Friday. The Danes have been frontrunners in investing Western military aid in Ukraine's defense manufacturing, using funds to buy locally produced weapons rather than foreign equipment through what is known as the Danish model. 'Denmark has taken the lead in the international efforts to strengthen defense production in Ukraine,' Minister of Defence Troels Lund Poulsen said. 'It is a recognition of Denmark's efforts on this matter that the EU has decided to channel even more funds through us this year.' The windfall profits this year will be used for donations of supplies including ammunition, air defense and military equipment produced in the Ukrainian defense industry, the Ministry of Defence said. Last year's equipment purchases using the Danish model included Bohdana howitzers, long-range drones, anti-tank and anti-ship missile systems. Buying Ukrainian strengthens the embattled country's production capacity, ensures competitive prices, and enables faster adaptation to the Ukrainian needs, the ministry said. 'This provides obvious logistical advantages while also contributing to building Ukraine's defense industry for the future,' Lund Poulsen said. 'We are now able to do this on an even larger scale.' Denmark last year allocated around €400 million of windfall profits from Russian assets on behalf of the EU, using the Danish model. Total funding channeled via the model amounted to around 4.4 billion Danish kroner ($664 million) in 2024, with contributions from the Danish Ukraine fund, allies, and the EU, according to the ministry. Denmark expects to implement more than double that amount through the model in 2025, the MoD said. Denmark will allocate aid to Ukraine on behalf of several countries, including Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Canada.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Denmark to field unmanned vessels for monitoring busy shipping routes
VILNIUS, Lithuania — U.S.-based Saildrone will deploy four large unmanned surface vessels in Danish waters next month to conduct maritime surveillance missions and help protect critical undersea infrastructure. The deployment, which represents Saildrone's first European mission, will be done in close cooperation with the Royal Danish Navy Command and the Danish Ministry of Defense Acquisition and Logistics Organization. Thales, Saildrone pitch a windsurfing fleet of submarine spotters Four 10-meter Voyager USVs equipped with a suite of intelligence-gathering sensors and AI data fusion will be sent to Denmark to support the Danish military gain better maritime awareness. The North and Baltic seas are some of the busiest shipping routes in the world. An estimated 2,000 ships are generally at sea at any given time in the Baltic Sea, according to the Helsinki Commission. Denmark currently lacks sufficient assets to provide consistent and comprehensive monitoring of the waterway. 'The threats we face at sea are different and far more serious than just a few years ago,' the Danish Minister of Defense Troels Lund Poulsen said at a recent press conference. The Danish government approved last month a series of naval expansion plans, including the development of a program dedicated to assessing autonomous platforms such as naval drones and remote-controlled vehicles to conduct underwater surveillance. Saildrone, which announced the establishment of a subsidiary in Copenhagen only a few weeks ago, has plans to expand its presence in the region, the company's President John Mustin told Defense News. 'Our goal is to have that act as a sort of centre of excellence for our platforms, if for example some would need repair or maintenance work, they could do it right there,' the executive said in a May 8 interview.
