In a Time of Crisis: Danish Foreign Policy in the Middle East and North Africa

This DIIS publication stresses that Denmark faces hard strategic choices in the Middle East and North Africa and suggests that it needs to shape its own unique approach to doing foreign policy in the Middle East and North Africa.

Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the United States acted as a guiding light for Copenhagen on foreign and security policy in the region. Today, major US policy decisions under President Donald Trump offer less of a reference, standing at odds with European foreign policy positions.

The report suggests that Denmark should working closer with its European allies on security, supporting strategic democratization and good governance programmes as a buffer against hardening authoritarianism, and harnessing economic diplomacy to aid these efforts by offering opportunities for the region’s young and growing populations.