🔗 Share this article

In a move reminiscent of fictional guards, Denmark's foreign ministry has initiated a night watch team—not guarding against mythical threats, but to track the US president as Copenhagen is asleep.

This night monitoring starts at 5pm in Denmark daily and ends with a summary produced at 7 a.m., which is then circulated throughout government departments and concerned offices detailing statements made and developments taking place.

This position is understood to have been introduced following the bilateral dispute involving Copenhagen and Washington over Greenland this spring, when the American leader threatened taking control of the resource-rich territory.

Analysts note that this initiative is among several instances of how Danish diplomacy and its civil service have had to adapt to the changed landscape of the second Trump administration.

A source close to the foreign office remarked, “It's accurate to say that the situation in the region and the time zone gap separating Denmark and the United States were quite an important reason prompting this arrangement in the earlier months.”

Instead of all staff needing to immediately reach for their phones to stay informed on news from the United States, the ministry said it had undertaken a coordinated approach to remain informed on the president's activities.

An expert, a former chief analyst at the defense intelligence service, stated that this development demonstrated, “as we have always known,” that the idea of the US as Denmark’s largest and most important partner was dead. “Alliances are built on shared principles and a common threat perception,” Kaarsbo said. “The president lacks both of those with Denmark and I would argue he lacks it with the majority of Europe.”