More information about Denmark is available on the Kingdom of Denmark Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet.

U.S.-KINGDOM OF DENMARK RELATIONS

The Kingdom of Denmark and the United States have long enjoyed a close and mutually beneficial relationship. The two countries consult closely on European and other regional political and security matters and cooperate extensively to promote peace and stability well beyond Europe’s borders. Denmark is a stalwart NATO ally and a reliable contributor to multinational stability operations, as well as to international assistance initiatives. Denmark has forces deployed worldwide to nine NATO missions, UN peacekeeping operations, and the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. Denmark has led NATO Mission Iraq since November 2020. Denmark joined the forerunner to the EU, the European Economic Community, in 1973 and was incorporated into the EU upon its founding in 1993.

Denmark is one of the world’s most ambitious countries in the fight against climate change and is a close partner of the United States on pushing for increased global action. During COP-26, Denmark joined the Global Methane Pledge and the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4C) initiative, and the United States worked with Denmark to launch the Danish-led pledge on advancing cooperation in zero carbon shipping. The United States and Denmark have a bilateral science and technology agreement, signed in 2009, and in June 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy and three Danish bodies signed a new MOU focused on science cooperation in clean energy technologies and fundamental physics.

The Faroe Islands and Greenland are semi-autonomous regions within the Kingdom of Denmark, and the United States has a strong relationship with both, including regular dialogues on commercial, scientific, and cultural cooperation. The U.S. Consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, reopened on June 10, 2020, after the first U.S. Consulate in Nuuk closed in 1953.

The U.S. Air Force presence at Thule Air Base in northwest Greenland provides significant strategic value for the United States and NATO Allies. It plays a critical role in our early warning radar system, facilitating communication with polar orbit satellites, and supporting scientific research. Greenland hosts scientists from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), NASA, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), including at Summit Station, the NSF research station situated on the Greenlandic ice sheet.

Bilateral Economic Relations

Denmark has a thoroughly modern market economy with a strong social safety net. Denmark is highly dependent on foreign trade and is a strong supporter of liberal trade policy. Denmark’s strategic location at the entrance to the Baltic Sea has made Copenhagen a center for U.S. agencies and the private sector engaging with the Nordic and Baltic regions.

The United States is Denmark’s largest non-European trade partner, and largest overall export market. In 2021, U.S.-Denmark total two-way goods trade totaled over $15.7 billion; services trade in 2020 totaled $13.5 billion. Aircraft, computers, machinery, and instruments are among the major U.S. goods exports to Denmark, while Denmark exports industrial machinery, chemical products, furniture, pharmaceuticals, canned ham and pork, wind turbines, and toys. Denmark is a world leader in “green energy” industries, and in sectors such as IT, health and life sciences, and shipping. Danish investment in the United States is growing, notably in pharmaceuticals and wind energy. According to the Danish government, investments in the United States support some 79,000 U.S. jobs as of 2019.

Membership in International Organizations

Denmark is a global actor and contributes actively to the solution of global challenges through a variety of multilateral organizations notably, the United Nations, NATO, and the European Union (EU). Denmark is the only Nordic country that is a member of both NATO and the European Union (EU). In 2014, Denmark joined the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS and is currently a member of its Small Group and four working groups. Denmark participated in the newly formed Africa Focus Group meeting in March 2022.

As an Arctic state, Denmark looks to the Arctic Council as its main forum for Arctic cooperation. Denmark also seeks to actively work with regional partners through Nordic and Baltic cooperation forums.

As semi-autonomous regions within the Kingdom of Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands are not members of the United Nations. Greenland left the forerunner to the EU, the European Economic Community, in 1985 and is now one of the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) associated with the EU. The Faroe Islands decided not to become a part of the European Communities when Denmark joined in 1973.

Bilateral Representation

Principal embassy officials are listed in the Department’s Key Officers List.

The Kingdom of Denmark maintains an embassy  in the United States at 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008-3683 (tel. 202-234-4300). Greenland Representation is located within the same building.

More information about the Kingdom of Denmark is available from the Department of State and other sources, some of which are listed here:

CIA World Factbook Denmark Page 
U.S. Embassy
History of U.S. Relations With the Kingdom of Denmark
U.S. Census Bureau Foreign Trade Statistics 
Export.gov International Offices Page 
Travel Information

U.S. Department of State

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