Norwegian and Danish defence strategies, 1990‒2008: why so different?

What is it about?

Norway and Denmark are two countries with a great many similarities. The two states have closely related Scandinavian languages and cultures, democratic political systems, generous welfare states and are members of the same military alliance. For many non-Scandinavians, the two states may appear almost politically and socially indistinguishable. Even very similar countries can sometimes develop marked differences in particular sectors of society. In this article it is argued that defense policy is one such marked difference. After the Cold War, Norway was reluctant to get involved in international military operations and initially did so only with low-risk support units. Denmark, however, wholeheartedly embraced the expeditionary employment of its armed forces, and Danish units were frequently among the few western forces to engage in combat. In the first two decades that passed after the end of the Cold War, Norwegian and Danish defense policies therefore diverged significantly. This article discusses why these differences developed. It is argued that the occurred due to the two states different geopolitical situations, differences in their military cultures, and differences in their strategic cultures.

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Why is it important?

In the article I compare the defence policies of two small and very similar NATO states, and discuss why they have pursued very different defence policies after the Cold War. I aim to make mainly an empirical contribution, but the article should also be of interest to those researchers and policymakers who want to understand better the factors which help and hinder the transformation and internationalisation of the defence policies of small states.