Denmark today warned of a growing threat of espionage from Russia, China, Iran and other countries, including the Arctic region, where global powers are vying for access to resources and sea routes.
The Danish Security and Intelligence Service claimed that there had been numerous attempts at espionage against Denmark, whose active global role made it an attractive target.
“The threat of foreign intelligence activity against Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands has increased in recent years,” said Anders Henriksen, head of counterintelligence at the Danish Security and Intelligence Service.
Greenland and the Faroe Islands are sovereign territories under the Kingdom of Denmark and are also members of the Arctic Council Forum. Copenhagen handles most of the foreign and security issues.
The report cited a 2019 incident with a fake letter that appeared to have been sent by Greenland’s foreign minister to a U.S. senator saying an independence referendum was imminent.
“It is very likely that the letter was fabricated and circulated online by Russian agents, who wanted to create confusion and a possible conflict between Denmark, the United States and Greenland,” he said.
Moscow denies it
In an email to Reuters, Russia’s ambassador to Denmark, Vladimir Barbin, dismissed the letter as “false.”
He has linked the growing allegations against Russia to a spy scandal in which the United States allegedly used cooperation with Denmark’s foreign intelligence service to spy on senior officials from neighboring Germany, including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Barbin said the allegations “should be seen solely as an attempt to cover up the scandal with the Danish authorities providing the US National Security Agency with access to telecommunications cables running through Danish territory.”
The Arctic is becoming increasingly geopolitically important, with Russia, China, and the United States competing for access to natural resources, sea routes, exploration, and military strategic areas.
The Danish agency’s report also noted that foreign intelligence services – including China, Russia and Iran – have been trying to reach out to students, researchers and companies to gather information on technology and research in Denmark.
Reuters reported in November that a Chinese professor at the University of Copenhagen was conducting genetic research with the Chinese military without informing him of his collaboration.
Today’s report said that Denmark’s active international role as a NATO member, the open nature of its society and its high level of technological know-how have made it an “attractive target for foreign intelligence activities”.
Neither the Chinese nor the Iranian embassies responded to requests to comment on the Danish report.
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