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1. Decolonisation in the second space age

Author:
Trine Rosengren Pejstrup and Ian Klinke
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
The corporate space race is rendering space increasingly 'congested, contested, and competitive'.1 Governments too are upgrading their space capabilities. In Denmark, the new Danish Space Strategy promises a doubling of investment to ensure a Danish space industry that is 'ready for battle'. However, concerns over the environmental and sociopolitical consequences of test launches, extensive satellite programmes and ambitions to establish bases on celestial bodies have sparked growing criticism of a 'colonisation of outer space'. This policy brief reveals a growing political rift over the question of space colonisation.
Topic:
Space, Decolonization, Investment, and Commercialization
Political Geography:
Europe, Denmark, and Space

2. Russian military thinking about the Baltic Sea and the Arctic

Author:
Flemming Splidsboel Hansen
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
Russia is likely to continue its military build-up in both the Baltic Sea and the Arctic in the long-term perspective. Following the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO, Russian military thinkers and planners are increasingly seeing the two theatres as contiguous areas.
Topic:
Security, NATO, Military, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Eurasia, Finland, Sweden, Arctic, and Baltic Sea

3. Baltic States’ synchronization with the continental grid

Author:
Veronika Slakaityte and Izabela Surwillo
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
The disconnection of the Baltic States from the Russian electricity system and their synchronisation with the Continental European Network is a key technological and geopolitical milestone. But safeguarding energy infrastructure remains vital. Operating within a shared electricity grid across multiple countries improves reliability. This arrangement allows transmission system operators (TSOs) to share resources, maintain a steady flow of electricity and handle mismatches between supply and demand more efficiently, helping to lower overall costs and ultimately benefiting consumers. However, geopolitical tensions have turned the Russian electricity system into a strategic paradox: the Baltic States, NATO and EU members are connected to Russia’s electricity dispatch system – a perceived security threat – for grid stability.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, NATO, Infrastructure, European Union, Geopolitics, Economy, Electricity, and Energy
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, and Baltic States

4. Europe's teenage jihadists

Author:
Dino Krause
Publication Date:
01-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
Islamic State (IS)-related terror plots in Western Europe increasingly involve individuals under the age of 18. Central to this trend is IS’s ability to disseminate propaganda online, effectively targeting younger audiences.
Topic:
Radicalization, Internet, Islamic State, Youth, Propaganda, and Jihad
Political Geography:
Europe

5. EU foreign policy in the next political cycle

Author:
Fabrizio Tassinari
Publication Date:
01-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
The ‘geopolitical’ Commission of the past five years is to be replaced by a ‘geoeconomic’ discourse in the next political cycle. To enact the hard strategic choices ahead for the next Commission the EU needs to refocus on the normative underpinnings, the instruments of tried-and-tested effectiveness, and on managing expectations. A ‘geophilosophy’ of Europe can be harnessed as a constitutive lens to understand and practice foreign policy.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Politics, European Union, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:
Europe

6. Future-proofing peacekeeping

Author:
Peter Albrecht and Corine van Emmerik
Publication Date:
01-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
As Denmark takes its seat on the Security Council amidst geopolitical tensions and global fragmentation, peacekeeping is confronting an identity crisis. This moment offers Denmark a crucial opportunity to steer discussions on fundamental questions, aligning with its priority to adapt conflict responses and prevention strategies to contemporary challenges. Peacekeeping, historically one of the UN’s most significant and visible conflict management tools, stands at a crossroads. The large, multidimensional flagship mission in Mali was terminated in 2023, and the mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo has wound down, leaving lingering questions about their positive contributions to peace. No new missions, whether large or small, are currently being deployed. Furthermore, Secretary-General António Guterres appears disengaged from discussions on the future of peacekeeping, reflecting broader uncertainty about its relevance in today’s conflict landscape, and consensus among Security Council members is becoming increasingly elusive. With the background context of ongoing geopolitical tensions in Europe and the Middle East, there is a perception that peacekeeping missions deployed, supported, and/or mandated by the UN are becoming obsolete in addressing the evolving nature of modern conflicts.
Topic:
Peacekeeping, Geopolitics, UN Security Council, and Future
Political Geography:
Europe and Denmark

7. Norway’s vaccine diplomacy during Covid-19

Author:
Emma Sandvik Ling
Publication Date:
07-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
How did Nordic countries manage the tensions and ethical dilemmas of national health security and international solidarity during the Covid-19 vaccine response? This DIIS working paper examines Norway’s Covid-19 vaccine procurement and distribution strategy within the framework of the SCANVAX project on Nordic vaccine diplomacy. The study analyses how Norway worked to procure Covid-19 vaccines to cover the needs of the Norwegian people as well as how Norway engaged in the global pandemic response and efforts to ensure global vaccine distribution. The working paper also examines how tensions between national health security and international solidarity was navigated in public discourse during the pandemic. The case demonstrates how a small non-EU state managed pandemic responses through complex diplomatic arrangements while balancing domestic needs with global solidarity commitments. The working paper is part of the project Strategic solidarity: Scandinavian countries' Covid-19 vaccine diplomacy (SCANVAX) that explores the significant tension between national, regional and international vaccine solidarity during Covid-19 and asks how the dominant policy goal of securing vaccines in the interest of national health security was intertwined with global health security and broader foreign policy objectives, whether related to international solidarity, diplomatic influence, or geopolitical interests. SCANVAX is financed by NordForsk under the Nordic Council of Ministers and implemented by a consortium of researchers from the University of Oslo, Lund University and DIIS.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, COVID-19, and Vaccine Diplomacy
Political Geography:
Europe and Norway

8. Denmark’s vaccine diplomacy during Covid-19

Author:
Adam Moe Fejerskov and David Lyndorff Paris
Publication Date:
07-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
How did Nordic countries manage the tensions and ethical dilemmas of national health security and international solidarity during the Covid-19 vaccine response? This DIIS working paper examines Denmark's Covid-19 vaccine procurement and distribution strategy within the framework of the SCANVAX project on Nordic vaccine diplomacy. The Danish case shows the complexities of how a small European state managed pandemic responses through multilateral frameworks while pursuing national interests, highlighting persistent tensions between vaccine nationalism and global health solidarity during health crises. Denmark's experience illustrates the multifaceted realities of vaccine diplomacy, where even countries with strong international development commitments prioritise domestic health security when faced with uncertain vaccine supplies, while simultaneously using surplus vaccines as tools for broader foreign policy objectives. The working paper is part of the project Strategic solidarity: Scandinavian countries' Covid-19 vaccine diplomacy (SCANVAX) that explores the significant tension between national, regional and international vaccine solidarity during Covid-19 and asks how the dominant policy goal of securing vaccines in the interest of national health security was intertwined with global health security and broader foreign policy objectives, whether related to international solidarity, diplomatic influence, or geopolitical interests. SCANVAX is financed by NordForsk under the Nordic Council of Ministers and implemented by a consortium of researchers from the University of Oslo, Lund University and DIIS.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Vaccine, COVID-19, Development Policy, and Vaccine Diplomacy
Political Geography:
Europe and Denmark

9. Three opportunities for expanding Danish 'Techplomacy'

Author:
Kristin Anabel Eggeling
Publication Date:
07-2025
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
As governments around the world struggle with the international dimensions of digital transformation, Denmark has been at the forefront with its pioneering ‘techplomacy’ strategy. Now, it has the opportunity to enhance this approach through discursive, geographic and sectoral expansion. The term ‘techplomacy’ merges technology and diplomacy. Since 2017 the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has appointed three ‘tech ambassadors’; opened and developed three ‘tech embassies’ in Palo Alto, Beijing and Copenhagen; and published two dedicated ‘tech diplomacy’ strategies in 2021 and 2024. Thanks to these efforts, Denmark has become widely regarded as a diplomatic pioneer in this field, not least by the large number of states that have begun to follow the Danish model.1 In light of considerable geopolitical changes since the publication of the most recent strategy in May 2024,2 the Ministry could expand these efforts in three ways. First, discursively – by fostering more inclusive global narratives and highlighting the democratic benefits of digital regulation; second, geographically – by extending its virtual reach and physical presence to other global hubs of technology development; and third sectorally – by investing in new forms of cross-sectoral diplomacy that focus on collaboration with key sites of research and development and major technology companies.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Science and Technology, and Geopolitics
Political Geography:
Europe and Denmark

10. Beyond Access: Towards productive inclusion in the era of fintech

Author:
Marie Kolling, Kevin Donovan, and Adam Moe Fejerskov
Publication Date:
06-2025
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
Abstract:
New DIIS publication compels financial inclusion discussions to move beyond access to ensure inclusion improves economic well-being for low-income populations. It underscores the linked nature of household and sovereign debt, arguing that both must be addressed to advance global prosperity
Topic:
Science and Technology, Finance, Inclusion, and Well-Being
Political Geography:
Europe and Denmark