Denmark

Swedish PM self-isolates as nation passes grim threshold

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Sweden’s prime minister has gone into protective self-isolation after a person close to him came into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, as Sweden experiences a fall surge of coronavirus infections.

Stefan Lofven broke the news on Facebook on Thursday, when the Scandinavian country passed the threshold of 6,000 overall coronavirus deaths.

“The developments are going in the wrong direction fast. More are infected. More die. This is a serious situation,” he wrote.

Denmark to criminalise foreign funding for mosques

28 Oct 2020; MEMO: Denmark is set to present a new bill that would criminalise funding for mosques sent by foreign countries and entities, in new efforts to counter religious extremism.

The bill was announced in a Facebook post by Danish Integration Minister Mattias Tesfaye earlier this month, who said that the government would criminalise the funding of mosques in the country by any individuals, organisations, or even countries which “oppose or undermine democratic values, fundamental freedoms and human rights.”

Norway says Russia was behind hacker attack on parliament

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Norway’s foreign minister said Russia is behind a break-in into the Norwegian Parliament’s email system in August, calling the intrusion “a serious incident that affects our most important democratic institution.”

“It is our assessment that Russia is behind this activity,” Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide said.

Prime Minister Erna Solberg told the Norwegian news agency NTB on Wednesday that it was “important for the government to give a clear message to the Russians that we do not accept this.”

Denmark: Three migrants rescued near Malta after jumping off stranded tanker

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Three migrants were rescued off the coast of Malta on Sunday after they jumped overboard from a tanker that has been denied entry by several countries since a rescue operation a month ago.

The captain of the Maersk Etienne chemical tanker had warned last week that, while the migrants had no critical physical problems, the mental strain for those onboard was getting worse.

“The situation onboard Maersk Etienne escalated further this morning when three migrants jumped overboard,” a Maersk spokeswoman said on Sunday.

Norwegian Air cancels order for 97 Boeing aircraft

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle said Tuesday it has cancelled its 97 outstanding orders for planes from U.S. manufacturer Boeing.

Norwegian said in a statement it had terminated the purchase agreements of five 787 Dreamliners and 92 737 MAX aircraft.

The Oslo-based company also said it had filed a legal claim seeking the return of payments made for the aircraft. It is also seeking compensation for losses it claims it incurred from the global grounding of the 737 Max planes as well as engine issues on the 787.

Norwegian found guilty of spying for Iran in Denmark

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - A Danish court on Friday found a Norwegian citizen guilty of spying for an Iranian intelligence service and of complicity in a suspected plot to kill an Iranian Arab opposition figure in Denmark.

The 40-year-old Norwegian man, who has Iranian heritage, was arrested in October 2018 after a major police operation in which Denmark temporarily closed its international borders. The court did not give the man’s name.

Denmark will reopen to most European nations except Portugal, much of Sweden

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Denmark said on Thursday it would allow entry to citizens from most European nations with a low number of COVID-19 infections from June 27 - two months earlier than originally planned, including some two million people from hard-hit nearby Sweden.

European Union member states, non-EU countries in the open-border Schengen area such as Norway and also Britain, which is in neither grouping, will be individually assessed based on objective criteria, the Danish Foreign Ministry said.

Denmark wants 5G suppliers from closely allied countries, says defence minister

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Denmark wants to be able to exclude 5G technology suppliers from providing critical infrastructure in Denmark if they are not from countries considered security allies, online technology news outlet ITWatch reported on Monday.

“In order to protect Denmark and the Danes, we want to collaborate with someone with whom we already have alliances,” Minister of Defence Trine Bramsen told ITWatch.

The defence ministry was not immediately able to comment when contacted by Reuters.

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