The Danish government Establishes Nighttime Watch System to Track President Trump After Greenland Row
In a move inspired by TV series watches, the Danish foreign affairs department has initiated a nighttime monitoring team—not to fend off mythical foes, but to track the US president as Copenhagen is asleep.
This night watch starts at 5 p.m. local time daily and concludes with a report produced at 7am, which is then circulated throughout government departments and relevant offices detailing what was said and events that occurred.
This position is understood to have been established in the wake of the bilateral row between Denmark and Washington over Greenland earlier this year, when the US president suggested taking control of the resource-rich island.
Observers point out that this measure is among several instances of how Danish diplomacy and its civil service have had to adapt to the new reality of the Trump's current term.
An insider familiar with the ministry remarked, “It is fair to say that the situation in the region and the time zone gap separating Denmark and the United States were a significant reason introducing this system in the spring.”
Rather than all staff having to immediately reach for their phones to catch up on updates from the United States, the ministry said it had undertaken a collective effort to stay updated on the president's actions.
Jacob Kaarsbo, a ex- senior analyst at the defense intelligence service, stated that this move showed, “as we have always known,” that the notion of the US as Denmark’s largest and most important partner was no longer valid. “Alliances are built on shared principles and a mutual view of threats,” Kaarsbo said. “The president lacks both of those with us and I would argue he doesn't share it with most Europeans.”