Rearming to reduce dependence on US should be Europe’s top priority, says Danish prime minister – Europe live
NEWS | 28 January 2026
From 1h ago 06.54 EST Rearming Europe should be top priority to reduce reliance on US, Denmark's Frederiksen says We are now getting more quotes from Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen after her appearance at the Sciences Po university in Paris earlier today. Danish prime minister Frederiksen (centre) and Greenlandic prime minister Nielsen (right) attend a Grande Conference at Sciences Po in Paris, France. Photograph: Mohammed Badra/EPA Asked about Nato secretary general Mark Rutte’s comments about Europe’s ability to defend itself, Frederiksen conceded it would be “extremely difficult” with how things are at the moment, AFP reported. She said that’s because “when you look at intelligence, nuclear weapons, and so on, we depend on the US.” But she insisted that “I think we’re able to do more than what is being said publicly right now.” The Danish PM stressed, however, that rearming Europe should be “the most important thing” for European leaders, adding that 2035 would be “too late” as a target. Share Updated at 07.02 EST 2h ago 05.56 EST Hungarian prosecutors charge liberal Budapest mayor over Pride march Elsewhere, Hungarian prosecutors have brought charges against Budapest’s liberal mayor, Gergely Karácsony, over his role in arranging an LGBTQ+ rights rally, and are seeking to impose a fine without holding a trial, Reuters reported. Tens of thousands of protesters marched through Budapest last June despite a police ban, turning the Pride march into one of the biggest anti-government demonstrations in years against nationalist prime minister Viktor Orbán. Reuters explained that Karácsony had attempted to circumvent the ban by registering the Pride march as a municipal event, which he argued did not require a permit. Police nevertheless prohibited it, saying it fell under the child-protection law. The march ultimately went ahead peacefully. Prosecutors allege Karácsony violated the law by organising and leading a banned assembly. View image in fullscreen People cross Elisabeth Bridge during the Budapest Pride March in Budapest, Hungary. Photograph: Bernadett Szabó/Reuters In his response, the mayor said: “I went from being a proud suspect to a proud defendant.” “Apparently this is the price in this country for standing up for our own and others’ freedom. But if anyone thinks they can stop me from doing this, discourage me, prevent me and my city from doing this, then they are very, very wrong,” he said. The move comes just months before the closely contested parliamentary election in the country, which could see the end of Orbán’s 16 years in power, as the liberal opposition party Tisza is leading in the polls. Share Updated at 06.04 EST 3h ago 05.23 EST Kremlin rejects US report suggesting Ukraine invasion has led to 1.2 million Russian casualties Meanwhile, the Kremlin has dismissed a report by a Washington-based thinktank that Russia had suffered nearly 1.2 million casualties since it began its war in Ukraine in February 2022, saying that such reports should not be seen as reliable, Reuters reported. The report, by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, estimated that at current rates, combined Russian and Ukrainian casualties could reach 2 million by the spring of 2026. Share Updated at 05.25 EST 3h ago 04.45 EST Five dead after Russian drone strike on passenger train in Ukraine If anyone somehow still had any doubts about Russia’s intentions, its last night’s drone strike against a moving passenger train in Ukraine may have offered some further answers. View image in fullscreen Ukrainian rescuers working at the site of a Russian drone hit on the passenger train near the city of Izyum in Kharkiv’s area, Ukraine. Photograph: State Emergency Service Handout/EPA At least five people were killed in the attack, local authorities said. Prosecutors said fragments of five bodies had been found at the scene of the strike on the train, which took place near a village in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. The train had been operating from Chop, near Ukraine’s western borders with Hungary and Slovakia, to the town of Barvinkove. Photographs posted online showed at least two carriages ablaze next to a snow-covered rail bed. “In any country, a drone strike on a civilian train would be considered in exactly the same way – purely as terrorism. There is not and cannot be any military purpose in this,” Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Russian drone strike on Ukrainian passenger train kills five Read more Share Updated at 04.50 EST 4h ago 04.04 EST 'Russia does not want peace with Europe,' Frederiksen warns, as she urges EU, US unity Speaking with students at SciencesPo, Frederiksen has also warned that “Russia does not want peace with Europe,” as she urged Europe and the US to “stick together.” Commenting on recent tensions with the US over Greenland, she said that both sides shared concerns on Arctic security, and they “will try to find a way forward with US.” Greenland’s Nielsen also spoke about the impact the confrontation with the US had on the local population. “What we are dealing with as a government is trying to push back from outside and handle our people who are afraid and scared,” he said. I will keep an eye on more lines coming out from that meeting, and the pair is also later expected to meet Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris. Share Updated at 04.04 EST 4h ago 03.53 EST 'World order as we know it is over' and not coming back, Denmark's Frederiksen says We are also getting first lines from a public event with Denmark’s prime minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic’s prime minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen at Sciences Po university in Paris. Picking up the theme of the morning so far, Frederiksen has warned that “the world order as we know it is over and I don’t think it will return”. Ugh. It’s not even 10am. I will bring you more on this as soon as we have it. Share Updated at 04.02 EST 4h ago 03.51 EST EU needs to 'rapidly' build its defence 'independence' and strengthen European Nato arm, says defence chief EU defence commissioner Andrius Kubilius follows Kallas and he strikes very much the same tone of urgency as he outlines the bloc’s defence policies. He says the EU needs to prepare for diminished US presence in Europe, and rapidly build up its “independence” in defence “without delays” or excuses. He stresses that “independence” doesn’t mean going alone, but building on what is already there, strengthening the European arm of Nato. Again, that’s clearly a response to Rutte’s comments earlier this week. He also says that Europe needs to “develop pan-European capabilities, not only national ones,” as “some gaps are so big they can only be filled together”. Kubilius also calls for a new European Security Council – an idea first floated by Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel in the late-2010s – to enhance political coordination on defence. Share Updated at 03.54 EST 4h ago 03.48 EST 'It cannot be that one country's veto defines policy for others,' EU's Kallas says Kallas also sent a warning shot to EU countries trying to occasionally obstruct the bloc’s policies, particularly on Russia, saying this must not be tolerated. “Let’s face it, Europe can be slow. Unanimity means we can not always act at the speed of relevance. Of course, there are policy differences among member states. This is all natural, but unanimity is also used by some as a bargaining tool. And it cannot be that one country’s veto defines the policy for others.” Yes, she probably means Hungary’s Viktor Orbán in particular. Expect to see more comments along these lines as we get closer to the high-stakes parliamentary election in the country in April, which could see the end of Orbán’s time in power after 16 years. Share Updated at 03.49 EST 4h ago 03.47 EST Nato 'needs to become more European to maintain strength,' EU's Kallas says In comments that will likely be seen as a challenge to Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte and his recent insistence that Europe cannot defend itself without the US (Europe Live, Monday), EU’s Kallas specifically called for more work to be done on te European side of Nato. “Nato needs to become more European to maintain its strength, and for that Europe must act. For example, we need to ensure that our security and defence initiatives remain complementary to Nato.” In comments that will likely raise eyebrows at Nato HQ across Brussels, she said: “For this, the ball is also in Nato’s court. If you want to use EU instruments such as our budgetary and regulatory power to support and enable Nato, we have to know what these needs and targets are. The more information Nato provides, the better we can align here.” She concluded: “In short, we need to sync our efforts together with Nato so as to complement each other and to demonstrate how distinct European pillar adds to value through more burden sharing and military strength on our continent.” Share
Author: Jakub Krupa.
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