Princess Isabella of Denmark. EPA/Yonhap
Denmark has moved to expand its military forces in response to the Russian threat and U.S. President Donald Trump’s pressure to annex Greenland. On the 3rd, a new conscription system that more than doubled the service period took effect, and new conscripts entered the military as the first cases under the strengthened defense framework.
According to Reuters, about 1,600 new Danish conscripts entered barracks in Slagelse and other locations that day to begin 11 months of mandatory service. The Danish government, which has pursued a stronger military since the war in Ukraine, extended the service period from the previous four months to 11 months and expanded the pool from men aged 18 and older to include women. It also plans to raise the annual number of conscripts from the current 5,000 to 7,500 by 2033.
Among those entering service this time is Princess Isabella, 19, who is second in line to the throne. The second daughter of King Frederik X and Queen Mary, Princess Isabella entered the Slagelse barracks carrying a backpack, Germany’s dpa reported.
The princess will serve for 11 months without pay in the Guard Hussar Regiment. Her older brother, Crown Prince Christian, also completed service as a conscript before entering an army second lieutenant training course last year, marking a repeat of the Danish royal family’s tradition of military participation.
Denmark also plans to send conscripts to Greenland for the first time later this month. A company of about 100 troops will be deployed for one month, taking over operational duties previously carried out by professional soldiers. As the measure comes amid Trump’s repeated statements of his intention to annex Greenland, Reuters analyzed that this deployment carries political implications. The Danish and Greenlandic governments have drawn a line against any annexation attempt and are focusing on strengthening their own security capabilities.
Silas Noor, 19, a new recruit from Varde, viewed the extended service period positively in an interview with Reuters, saying, “I will be able to really immerse myself in military life and, by experiencing it fully, get to know the military much more deeply.” New conscripts will be deployed to actual operations for six months after five months of basic training, and a new drone platoon will be formed under the Special Operations Command.
Denmark’s conscription operates on a lottery basis for adults aged 18 and older, but in recent years volunteers have filled most of the quota, with the lottery used only to make up any shortfall. Nordic countries including Sweden, Finland and Norway, as well as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, which border Russia, also maintain mandatory service systems.