On November 17, local time, the Danish Radio and Television (DR) reported that “whether the Danish Defense Intelligence Agency (FE) violated the law” is a key question that must be answered in future investigations. According to news reports from Danish Radio and Television, an allegation alleged that the US National Security Agency (NSA) used its cooperation with the Danish Defense Intelligence Agency to monitor Danish government agencies, the defense industry, and Denmark’s neighbors.
The government has submitted a bill regarding the upcoming strict confidential investigation of the Danish Defense Intelligence Agency and has received political support for the proposal. But the bill does not indicate whether espionage will be included in the scope of investigation.
Eva Fleholm, the defense spokesperson for the Danish Solidarity List (a Danish political party), said: “We need to make sure that this can be investigated correctly, but we have not done so yet.”
The investigation will try to reduce the number of personnel who have in-depth understanding of the details, and will use the basis for creating the investigation, determining the scope of authority, and determining the content to be investigated.
It is reported that the investigation will be conducted by a committee composed of Attorney General Nick Herkrupp, some personnel from the Ministry of Defense, five members of Parliament and three national judges. In addition, the government decided to support the proposal for the solidarity list, so the Danish Intelligence Service will also have the opportunity to read the full investigation report.
However, the Danish Institute of Human Rights believes that the government must inform the public of what is being investigated and what will not be investigated. The director of the Danish Institute of Human Rights said, “These are potentially serious violations of legal principles and human rights.”
Department of Defense spokesperson Anne Valentina Bertson believes that if the National Security Agency (NSA) monitors important Danish interests, it is “very serious.” Lars Findsen, the former head of the Danish Defense Intelligence Agency, who resigned in August this year, said he calmly looks forward to any investigation into the case. In addition, the Danish Minister of Justice, the Minister of Defense, the Danish Defense Intelligence Agency and the US National Security Agency did not want to comment on this case. The Intelligence Service said it had no comment.
