The Danish government Sets Up Special Watch Operation to Track President Trump Following Arctic Dispute
Taking action reminiscent of TV series guards, Denmark's foreign ministry has created a night watch unit—far from guarding against fantasy threats, but to monitor Donald Trump as Denmark sleeps.
This night monitoring begins at 5 p.m. local time daily and ends with a report compiled at 7am, which is then circulated throughout government departments and relevant offices detailing what was said and events that occurred.
The role is believed to have been introduced in the wake of the diplomatic dispute between Denmark and Washington over the Arctic island earlier this year, when the US president threatened taking control of the strategic territory.
Observers note that this initiative is among several examples of how Danish diplomacy and its civil service have had to adjust to the changed landscape of the Trump's current term.
An insider familiar with the foreign office remarked, “It's accurate to say that the situation in the region and the time zone gap separating Denmark and the US was a significant reason introducing this system during the spring.”
Instead of all staff needing to promptly reach for their phones to catch up on news from the United States, the foreign office explained it had made a coordinated approach to remain informed on the president's actions.
An expert, a ex- chief analyst at the Danish defence intelligence agency, commented that this move showed, “as we have always known,” that the notion of the US as Denmark's primary partner was dead. “Alliances are built on common values and a mutual view of threats,” Kaarsbo said. “Trump shares neither of those with us and it can be said he doesn't share it with the majority of Europe.”