Member of Venstre Formation 14 January 1905 Website Forsvarsministeren | Term length 4 Years First holder J.C. Christensen | |
 | ||
Reports to Prime minister of Denmark | ||
The Minister of Defence of the Kingdom of Denmark (Danish: Forsvarsminister) is the politically appointed head of the Danish Ministry of Defence . The Minister of Defence is responsible for the Danish armed forces, the Danish Defence Intelligence Service and the Danish Emergency Management Agency. The main responsibilities of the Minister of Defence are to prevent armed conflicts and war, to safeguard the sovereignty of Denmark and integrity of Danish territory and to promote global peace and stability. Since 2002 these responsibilities have included the political leadership of the Danish contribution to the NATO led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
The Minister of Defence follows the directions given by the Prime Minister of Denmark and the decisions of the parliament (Danish: Folketinget). The highest military post in the Danish defence is the Danish Chief of Defence, who reports directly to the Minister of Defence on questions related to the command of the armed forces.
The current Defence Minister is Claus Hjort Frederiksen.
History
In 1905, the offices of the Navy Minister and the War Minister were merged to create the current office of Defence Minister.