Russia-Denmark relations

Official relations between Russia and Denmark were established in Copenhagen on November 8, 1493, when the parties signed the Love and Brotherhood Treaty between the Kingdom of Denmark and the Moscow Tsardom. In November 1993, Russia and Denmark signed the Declaration on the Fundamentals of Relations in connection with the 500th anniversary of the Love and Brotherhood Treaty. The two countries opened their permanent missions in 1700.

Nazi Germany occupied Denmark in April 1940. Denmark severed diplomatic relations with Russia on June 22, 1941, when Germany attacked the Soviet Union, and only resumed them on May 16, 1945. In 1956, Prime Minister Hans Christian Hansen became one of the first post-war Western leaders to visit Moscow. Queen Margrethe II was the first Western monarch to visit the Soviet Union in 1975.

On December 23, 1991, Denmark together with the other EU countries adopted a statement recognising Russia as the successor state of the Soviet Union.

Between April 27-28, 2010, the President of Russia made a state visit to Denmark, the first state visit by the Russian head of state to the kingdom. Between September 6-9, 2011, Queen Margrethe II made a state visit to Russia.

On March 22, 2010, the prime ministers of Russia and Denmark met in St Petersburg when the Danish concern A.P. Moeller-Maersk opened a direct trans-Atlantic freight line between Ecuador and St Petersburg. On April 26, 2011, the Prime Minister of Russia made a working visit to Denmark.

Russia and Denmark maintained close relations between their parliaments and foreign ministers before the crisis in Ukraine. On March 1, 2016, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a short meeting with former Foreign Minister of Denmark Kristian Jensen on the sidelines of the high-level panel discussion of the 31st session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. On March 29, 2017, Sergey Lavrov had a meeting with his Danish counterpart, Anders Samuelsen, at the fourth international forum The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue in Arkhangelsk.

Denmark as an EU country has supported all the EU sanctions against Russia over the developments in Ukraine and has cancelled or suspended some important bilateral contacts. In December 2016, Denmark joined the EU guidelines for the non-recognition of Russian ordinary international passports issued by the Russian administrative authorities established in Crimea and Sevastopol after March 18, 2014.

Russian-Danish relations are based on a sound legal framework that covers numerous cooperation areas.

Denmark’s cooperation with Russian regions is a major element of bilateral relations. Copenhagen is focused on the development of ties with the Kaliningrad and Pskov regions, St Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, as well as the Krasnodar Territory. The Danish Honorary Consulate opened in Kaliningrad in 1998.

Bilateral trade and economic cooperation developed sustainably until and throughout 2014, but it has been dwindling since the first quarter of 2015. By the end of 2015, bilateral trade plummeted by 37.5 percent to $2.81 billion compared to 2014. Russian exports plunged by 33 percent to $1.94 billion, and imports from Denmark fell 45.5 percent to $874.5 million. Between January and July 2016, bilateral trade fell by another 32 percent year on year, to $1.26 billion. Russian exports plummeted by 43.2 percent to $765 million, and imports from Denmark fell 2.4 percent to some $499 million. 

At this point, Russia holds 15th place on the list of Denmark’s trading partners (it held 13th place before the EU sanctions and Russia’s response measures).

Russia maintains positive trade relations with the Danish autonomies, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, which are not part of the EU and have not joined the EU’s anti-Russia sanctions. A Representative Office of the Faroe Islands opened at the Danish Embassy in Moscow in March 2015.

Russia and Denmark have established a joint Intergovernmental Economic Cooperation Council, which was co-chaired by Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov and Danish Foreign Minister Kristian Jensen. The council held its 10th meeting in Copenhagen between April 22-23, 2013. Following a government reshuffle, Kristian Jensen was appointed finance minister on November 28, 2016, ceding his position at the joint council to Anders Samuelsen.

Russia and Denmark continue to strengthen their ties in research, culture, education, sports as well as tourism.