In June 2023, the government, along with a broad majority in the Danish Parliament, agreed on a defense settlement that includes investments of DKK 143 billion in the Danish defense sector from 2024 to 2033. This includes strengthening defense-related research and development, which has broad support within the Danish research and innovation system. However, DFiR perceives that public research environments expect the prioritization of defense research to be achieved through the allocation of new funds, rather than at the expense of other research areas. DFiR recommends that this expectation be upheld politically, so that investments in defense research are not counted towards the goal of public research investments equivalent to 1% of GDP.
Furthermore, prioritizing defense research will necessitate heightened security in Danish knowledge environments. DFiR assesses that this will inevitably impose an administrative and financial burden on Danish institutions, and that individual researchers will need to actively consider their boundaries for participating in defense research.