The Danish Armed Forces of Denmark reported a Russian destroyer repeatedly breached Danish territorial seas north of the Baltic Sea island of Bornholm, where a democracy festival with high officials and businessmen was taking place.
The move was deemed an unacceptable provocation by Denmark. The Danes, according to the Russian embassy in Copenhagen, presented no evidence.
According to the armed forces, the Russian cruiser entered Danish waters without authority around 0030 GMT on Friday and again a few hours later. According to the report, the cruiser left when radio communication was established with the Danish navy.
“A highly reckless, gross, and absolutely unacceptable Russian provocation in the middle of #fmdk,” Foreign Minister of Denmark, Jeppe Kofod tweeted.
Top government officials, including Kofod and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, attend the yearly festival.
“Bullying tactics are ineffective against Denmark,” Kofod added.
He claimed that the Russian ambassador had been summoned, which the Russian embassy in Copenhagen confirmed.
The ambassador was informed that a Russian cruiser had “apparently crossed the Danish territorial sea,” according to the embassy.
“No evidence of what transpired was supplied,” the statement claimed, “including the coordinates of the purported crossing of the Danish maritime border by the ship.”
According to Danish Defence Minister, Morten Bodskov, there was no immediate threat to the event or Bornholm.
“We have to realize that the Baltic Sea is becoming a high-tension zone,” said Bodskov.
Last month, Ukraine’s defense minister announced that the country had begun acquiring Harpoon missiles from Denmark, which he said were the outcome of multi-country collaboration. Weapons are being sent to Ukraine by Western partners in order to defend against the Russian military that invaded the country in late February.
Ukraine announced on Friday that two Harpoon missiles were fired at a Russian military tugboat in the Black Sea, marking the first time it has claimed to have targeted a Russian vessel with Western-supplied anti-ship weapons.
