The Greenland flag at Tivoli has been flying this week over the Tivoli Castle building by Copenhagen’s City Hall Square, as the historic amusement park says it wants to show “consideration” for Greenlanders at a time of rising geopolitical pressure. Why Tivoli raised the Greenland flag Tivoli said the flag-raising is meant as a quiet public gesture toward Greenland and its people, framed as a reminder of a relationship built over decades. In a written statement cited by news agency Ritzau, Tivoli’s chief executive, Susanne Mørch Koch, said the gesture is “an expression of consideration in a time that feels difficult for many”, adding that the park wants to show it is “thinking of Greenland” and standing by the community “built up over many years”.

Copenhagen Airport passenger record figures show that Denmark’s main hub handled 32.4 million travellers in 2025, the highest number in its history, according to the airport’s latest traffic update published on 7 January 2026. The result came in a year marked by new routes, a sharp rise in transfer traffic, and a Danish debate over how to square aviation growth with climate targets. Passenger numbers beat the pre-pandemic peak from 2018 Copenhagen Airport (CPH), also known as Kastrup, said the 2025 total surpassed its previous record from 2018 (30.3 million passengers)

Norway’s warmest year on record was 2025, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute (Meteorologisk institutt) said on 7 January 2026, after national average temperatures ended 1.5°C above the 1991–2020 normal. The institute also reported that 2025 was the eighth wettest year in Norway since measurements began in 1901, with 10% more precipitation than normal. Record heat, measured against today’s climate normal The Meteorological Institute uses the 1991–2020 period as its “climate normal” baseline for comparing current conditions with recent decades. Against that reference, 2025 was exceptionally warm across the country.

Sweden retirement age 67 is now the official benchmark in the country’s public pension system from January 1, 2026, after reforms that tie key eligibility thresholds to life expectancy. The change does not force anyone to stop working at 67, but it shifts when people can access different parts of the national pension and several related benefits. What changes on January 1, 2026 Sweden’s reform introduces the target retirement age (riktålder) as the reference point for when retirement is “normal” in the system. For many cohorts, this means: Income pension and premium pension…

The plan to buy Greenland—rather than launch a military operation—was presented by USA Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a closed-door briefing with lawmakers, according to multiple media reports. The message is meant to lower immediate fears of an invasion, but it has not eased the wider crisis between the USA, Denmark and Greenland, after the White House and President Donald Trump repeatedly refused to rule out military force and framed control of the island as a national security priority. Rubio’s closed-door briefing frames it as a purchase…

Greenland is not Venezuela, Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said on Monday, 5 January 2026, pushing back against online speculation and political rhetoric in the USA that followed Washington’s military operation in Venezuela and President Donald Trump’s renewed talk of taking control of the Arctic island. Speaking after a wave of reactions in Copenhagen and across Europe, Nielsen stressed that Greenland is a democracy and that its future cannot be decided through media pressure or social media posts. Image: Protest in Copenhagen // Nils Meilvang / NTB Why the comparison with Venezuela matters for Greenland…

Sweden’s birth rate has fallen to its lowest level in about two decades, and the effects are already visible in local services. In early January 2026, SVT reported that several municipalities in Östergötland and on Gotland have closed preschool (förskola) units or are planning reorganisations, as fewer children enter the system and municipal budgets and buildings are forced to adjust. What the latest numbers say about Sweden’s birth rate In Sweden, the drop is not just a perception but a measurable demographic shift. The National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) reported that around…

A Danish woman living in Ribe, southern Denmark, is suspected of violating the Animal Welfare Act (dyreværnsloven) after police said they found more than 50 dogs in her home during a search on 11 December 2025. Some animals were euthanised after a veterinary assessment, while most were treated and moved to a kennel before being returned to owners or rehomed. What police say they found at the woman’s home in Ribe South and South Jutland Police (Syd- og Sønderjyllands Politi) said officers searched the home of a…

Greenland sovereignty was thrust back into the European agenda on Tuesday, 6 January 2026, after a group of European leaders issued a joint statement saying that “Greenland belongs to its people” and that only Denmark and Greenland can decide the island’s future. The statement came in response to renewed remarks by USA President Donald Trump about taking control of Greenland, made in the days after Washington’s military operation in Venezuela. The signatories — the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom and Denmark — framed the issue as both a matter of…

The Capital Region apprenticeship shortage is increasingly becoming a bottleneck for industrial employers around Copenhagen, according to a new survey referenced by the trade union Dansk Metal, which found that more than one in five industrial companies in the region struggle to recruit apprentices. The union warns that shortages in skilled trades such as metalwork, industrial technology and mechanics could deepen over the coming years if firms do not take a more active role in attracting young people. The findings, reported by Danish regional outlet TV 2 Kosmopol, are based on responses from Dansk Metal shop stewards (tillidsrepræsentanter).

Norway’s universities have more students but fewer lecturers, according to new figures covering 2023–2025, prompting warnings from student representatives and staff unions about pressure on teaching quality and supervision. Data from the national higher education statistics database show that academic full-time equivalents (FTEs) have fallen while the student population has continued to grow. Academic staff numbers fall as student intake rises In 2023, Norwegian universities and university colleges recorded 26,306 academic FTEs across public and private institutions. By 2025, that figure had dropped to 24,584, a decline of roughly…

The proposed Tórshavn friendship city agreement with Copenhagen and Nuuk has been rejected for a second time in two years, putting on hold a political push in Denmark’s capital to formalise closer ties across the Danish Realm (Rigsfællesskabet). What Copenhagen and Nuuk were aiming for Copenhagen and Nuuk signed a formal friendship city agreement in October 2024, framing it as a way to strengthen cooperation between two of the three capitals in the Danish Realm. The agreement set out broad areas for collaboration, including local democracy and citizen participation…

Støre New Year address 2026 opened from the rebuilt Høyblokka in Oslo’s Government Quarter — a deliberate return to the site of the 22 July 2011 terror attack — and used it to frame the year ahead around one overriding objective: security. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre argued that global instability now “reaches all the way into our lives”, and that Norway’s response must combine defence and preparedness with democracy, welfare and the everyday decisions citizens make. Returning to Høyblokka and the memory of 22 July Støre’s choice of location carried the speech’s first political message.

King Harald’s New Year speech (broadcast on 31 December 2025, as Norway headed into 2026) framed the year ahead as a test of community, democratic resilience and preparedness. Moving from local encounters in Østfold to wars in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan, the King argued that the answer to a more unstable world starts with participation at home: “Each and every one matters… there is a need for exactly you” (translated from Norwegian). Aremark and the ‘vitamin injection’ of community The speech opened with a scene from the royal couple’s visit to…

Nordic Council of Ministers preparedness is set to be a key priority for Denmark and the Faroe Islands as they take over the presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers for 2026. Denmark’s Minister for Nordic Cooperation (minister for nordisk samarbejde) Morten Dahlin said the chairmanship will push for closer co-ordination on societal security and the security of supply, citing Russia’s war against Ukraine and what Denmark describes as intensified hybrid pressure in Europe. Image: Nordic Council // Fred Guerdin Why preparedness is at the top of the 2026 agenda…

The Finland-Estonia undersea cable investigation has moved into a new phase after Finnish police formally arrested two crew members of the cargo ship Fitburg, which authorities suspect damaged an offshore telecommunications link on 31 December 2025 in the Gulf of Finland. Finnish investigators have not disclosed the suspects’ nationalities or roles on board. Two other crew members have been placed under a travel ban, while the rest of the 14-person crew remains under scrutiny as authorities continue interviews and technical examinations. How the Finland-Estonia undersea cable was damaged The damaged link is an…

Jens-Frederik Nielsen New Year’s address set a firm tone for Greenland’s leadership at the start of 2026, arguing that a year of intense outside attention has left a mark on the country — and that respect must be the baseline for any future cooperation. Speaking as Prime Minister (landsstyreformand) and head of Naalakkersuisut (the Greenland government), Nielsen tied the past year’s geopolitical pressure to a broader message about sovereignty, dignity and the need to keep everyday challenges in focus. Respect and sovereignty after a year of outside pressure Nielsen’s central argument was that Greenland cannot treat the past year as “just politics at a distance”.

NORDEFCO leadership shifted to Norway on 1 January 2026, as Oslo took over the rotating chairmanship of the Nordic Defence Cooperation from Finland. Norwegian Defence Minister Tore O. Sandvik said the priority for 2026 is to deepen Nordic coordination on deterrence and defence at a time of war in Europe and heightened uncertainty. Norway’s NORDEFCO chairmanship starts amid a changed security map NORDEFCO was created in 2009, in a different European security environment. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Nordic defence cooperation has moved from a largely efficiency-driven framework to a platform that increasingly supports operational readiness, interoperability and political coordination.

Danish New Year addresses by King Frederik X on 31 December 2025 and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on 1 January 2026 converged on one core message: Denmark is entering 2026 in an era of sharper security risks and must respond by protecting social cohesion at home and alliances abroad. But they were also delivered with a clear domestic horizon: Denmark is heading for a general election in 2026, which makes the prime minister’s address, in particular, part of an emerging campaign narrative. Image: Amalienborg // Amalienborg Museum Hybrid threats and security set the common frame…

Mette Frederiksen New Year’s address on 1 January 2026 mixed personal self-criticism with a set of concrete policy promises, as Denmark heads towards a parliamentary election later this year. The prime minister framed the past years as a succession of crises—Covid-19, war in Europe, and a renewed dispute over Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark—and argued that her government must now show more “listening” on everyday pressures. A possible last speech before Denmark’s election Frederiksen opened with an unusually direct political message: with a general election expected in 2026, the speech “may turn out to be my last” as prime minister.

Swedish security could become more fragile after a Ukraine peace agreement, Sweden’s Minister for Defence (Minister for Defence) Pål Jonson said in an interview with SVT published on 31 December 2025, warning that any deal could allow Russia to redeploy forces toward the Baltic Sea region and intensify pressure on Sweden and its NATO allies. What Jonson says Russia could do in the Baltic Sea region Jonson argued that Russia’s war in Ukraine is currently limiting Moscow’s ability to pose an immediate military threat in Northern Europe, because the Kremlin is consuming large quantities of personnel and materiel on the battlefield.

King Frederik’s New Year’s address warned that “not everybody wishes us well”, as he linked Europe’s security climate to what he described as anonymous attacks in the “grey zone between peace and conflict”. Delivered on 31 December — the King’s second New Year’s address since he became head of state in January 2024 — the speech connected Denmark’s long experience of peace with the war in Ukraine, hybrid threats such as drones and cyber incidents, and cohesion across the Kingdom of Denmark. Hybrid threats “between peace and conflict”

The Faroe Islands Russia fishing agreement for 2026 will keep the long-running quota swap with Moscow in place, allowing Faroese trawlers to fish for key demersal stocks in the Barents Sea while Russian vessels retain access to pelagic quotas in Faroese waters. At the same time, the Faroese authorities will bar vessels linked to two Russian companies, Norebo JSC and Murman Sea Food, from operating in Faroese waters or calling at Faroese ports from 1 January 2026, citing security concerns. What the 2026 quota swap includes The fisheries deal is a yearly renegotiated quota exchange that dates back to…

Finnish in Norwegian schools is growing again, with 440 pupils enrolled in Finnish tuition in the 2025/26 school year—up from 413 the year before—after more than two decades of decline, according to figures shared by the interest organisation Kvensk Fremtid (Yleiskielen Tulevaisuus). The increase is small in absolute terms, but notable in northern Norway, where Finnish-related education is linked to the Kven (Kvener) minority and broader efforts to rebuild language competence after decades of assimilation. Enrollment in Finnish tuition rises to 440 pupils in 2025/26 The 2025/26 total (440 pupils) marks the second consecutive yearly increase.

School lunches in Sweden are feeding more children than before, according to a new study by the University of Gothenburg (Göteborgs universitet) that draws on reports from school meal staff across the country. The study, published on 30 December 2025, links the increase in portions eaten at lunchtime to worsening household finances, and warns that children in economically vulnerable situations are at higher risk during school holidays, when the safety net of daily meals disappears. More portions across the week, not just after weekends School meal staff report that pupils are…