Minister for Higher Education and Science Christina Egelund's speech at the Second European Science Diplomacy Conference, December 17, 2026
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Thank you to everyone who helped put this conference together. And I particularly want to thank our international guests who made the effort to travel here to Copenhagen.
Science still connects us.
Even in a world marked by geopolitical rivalry, strategic competition and growing fragmentation. Scientific cooperation remains one of the arenas where dialogue, trust and progress persist.
The fact that we are gathered here in Copenhagen from across Europe and beyond illustrates this point.
When researchers collaborate across borders, they share far more than data and methods. They also share values: Curiosity, transparency, integrity.
And a belief that knowledge should serve the common good.
These values spread quietly and organically. They travel through joint projects, exchange programmes and international research communities.
They strengthen relationships long before any formal agreement is written, forming an invisible infrastructure of trust that supports our shared progress.
Albert Einstein once said – and I quote:
“Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.”
Scientific cooperation is one of the most powerful engines of that understanding.
In Europe, we have built decades of scientific collaboration that transmits these values. And we reinforce them with the formal structures of the European Union. Our research programmes, our partnership models and our shared standards for openness, ethics and responsibility.
Together, these elements make European science both influential and attractive.
This is why science diplomacy is an important tool for shaping a more stable world. It allows us to share our values through global cooperation. And in times of uncertainty, it reminds us that collaboration is still possible.
In February, the European Commission published a report asking important questions:
This conversation is timely. Because without a clear framework, our ambitions risk becoming fragmented, much like the world around us.
A structured approach would not be designed to limit researchers. It would be designed to support them. It would offer clarity, guidance and coherence.
A European framework would help answer questions such as:
I am sure many people in this room have faced these questions and many more in your work recently.
I believe that clear principles and shared guidance can help the scientific community navigate an increasingly complex world.
And I find it fitting that this discussion is taking place not only among governments, but also here among the researchers and institutions that live the reality of science diplomacy every day.
Europe must be capable of standing on our own in critical areas, but we must also remain open to the world. The question is how do we do that?
In European research policy, we strive to be ‘As open as possible, as closed as necessary’. And I believe this is more than a than a slogan.
It reflects everyday challenges faced by researchers. Scientific progress depends on openness. But at the same time, we must protect ourselves against misuse, strategic dependency and unacceptable risks.
These decisions are not easy. Also, because many areas of modern research involve dual-use technologies.
So much modern science happens in grey areas where researchers must balance institutional rules, national security concerns and the fundamental ethics of scientific openness.
This is difficult.
It is difficult for governments and institutions, and it is particularly difficult for the individual researchers who face complex dilemmas in your daily work.
This is precisely why a European framework matters. It can help provide clarity without shutting down legitimate collaboration.
It can support responsible openness.
Some ask: Why even collaborate with countries who do not share our values when political tensions are running so high?
The answer, I believe, is straightforward: Because disengagement does not make Europe safer or stronger.
If we close every door, we lose insight and influence. We risk accelerating the formation of competing scientific coalitions. And this would harm not only Europe, but global scientific progress.
Selective, strategic engagement remains essential. And we have plenty of examples to support that.
In Denmark, for instance, we still have strategic and well-regulated science collaborations with China. Even though our countries’ diplomatic and political relationship is complex.
Sometimes the pursuit of scientific knowledge transcends politics. And as long as we are careful and strategic, the benefits – I believe – outweigh the risks.
And importantly, engagement allows us to communicate our values directly – through collaboration, not confrontation. It keeps channels open where silence would only deepen misunderstanding.
While strategic competition attracts much of our attention – and with good reason – there is another and sometimes overlooked aspect of scientific collaboration:
We in the European Union carry a broader responsibility.
We need to help strengthen research and innovation capacity in countries that need support.
Countries in South East Asia and Africa can benefit greatly from deeper scientific collaboration with Europe. And Europe can benefit from more inclusive and diverse global partnerships.
And this is important on our own continent as well.
In September this year, I visited Ukraine and saw with my own eyes the importance of research and education in a war-torn country.
In Ukraine, students and researchers are keeping knowledge alive even under the most difficult conditions.
Rebuilding schools and universities is about restoring hope and opportunity. It is about the belief in a brighter future. It is at the very heart of Ukraine’s recovery.
Research and education ensure that Ukraine grows stronger, smarter and more resilient while the country endures tremendous hardship. And this is a necessity for long-term stability and growth.
Research collaboration is how Ukraine will rebuild the foundations of a free and just society. And I am proud that Europe is forming an international coalition to support research and innovation in Ukraine.
Because science diplomacy is about solidarity and support as much as it is about managing risk.
Science connects us. It connects us across borders, across disciplines and at times even across political divides.
Science enables dialogue where other channels fall silent, and it helps build trust in a world that is too often defined by fragmentation.
Science diplomacy is a balancing act. Isolation will not make us safer. Openness without awareness will not serve us either.
The balance requires careful judgement. It requires us to remain principled and pragmatic at the same time.
I want to thank all of you for your commitment to this effort.
By engaging in science diplomacy, you help ensure that science remains a force for understanding and ultimately for peace.
You help keep open the channels that tie us together as researchers, as partners and ultimately as human beings.
Thank you.
