Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Denmark)
| Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | |
|---|---|
| Departementsråd for Udenrigspolitik | |
 Seal of the Prime Minister's Office of Denmark. | |
 | |
| Prime Minister's Office of Denmark | |
| Type | Permanent Under Secretary of State |
| Reports to | Permanent Secretary |
| Seat | Christiansborg, Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Appointer | The prime minister |
| Term length | No fixed term |
| Inaugural holder | Niels Egelund |
| Formation | 1995 |
| Salary | 1,730,356 DKK (2024) (€232,000) annually[1] |
The Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Danish: Departementsråd for Udenrigspolitik) is a senior diplomatic official within the Prime Minister's Office of Denmark, who serves as the principal advisor to the Prime Minister of Denmark on foreign affairs, security policy and all national security issues. The officeholder serves a role roughly equivalent to that of the National Security Advisor in the United States.[2] It is considered one of the most influential civil service positions in shaping Danish foreign policy.[3]
Heading the Foreign Policy Division, the postholder functions as the head of government's top diplomat and political “sherpa” during international summits. Though similar in appellation, it is distinct from both the Permanent Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Danish: Departementschef i Udenrigsministeriet), the highest civil servant in the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as the State Secretary for Foreign Policy (Danish: Direktør for Udenrigspolitik), also a senior official in the MFA.
Formally a Permanent Under Secretary of State (Danish: Departementsråd, lit. 'Departmental Counsellor.'), the office was established following an organizational restructuring in 1995,[4] and ranks immediately below the Permanent Secretary. Prior to its formal establishment, however, the Prime Minister had several foreign and security policy advisors.
History
[edit]The position was created in 1995 as part of a major organizational restructuring under Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen. This reform aimed to strengthen the Prime Minister’s role in foreign policy coordination and led to the creation of a dedicated foreign policy division within the Prime Minister's Office. As part of the restructuring, the Prime Minister’s Office was streamlined into three main divisions: foreign policy and security affairs, domestic policy and economic affairs, and lastly government coordination and legal affairs.[5][6]
The Foreign Policy Division became responsible for Denmark’s international relations, EU and Nordic cooperation, international economic policy, and security and defense matters, including NATO affairs.[7] By integrating these areas directly into the Prime Minister’s Office, the government sought to enhance strategic coherence and ensure more direct political control over key foreign policy decisions.[5][8]
Responsibilities
[edit]The Permanent Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs leads the Foreign Policy Division within the Prime Minister's Office and is responsible for:
- Providing strategic advice to the Prime Minister on foreign and security policy.
- Coordinating Denmark’s foreign policy across government ministries, particularly with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- Representing the Prime Minister’s Office in international summits and high-level diplomatic engagements.
- Ensuring policy coherence in EU, NATO, and multilateral affairs.
Like the majority of other staff in the Prime Minister's Office, the post-holder is seconded by government ministries, in this case the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This often means that the incumbent has considerable diplomatic experience, and after finishing their service in the Prime Minister's Office, they are often assigned to major diplomatic posts or senior civil service positions.
List of officeholders
[edit]| # | Portrait | Name
(birth–death) |
Term of office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Niels Egelund | 1995 | 1999 | |
| 2 | Per Poulsen-Hansen | 1999 | 2003 | |
| 3 | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Michael Peter Zilmer-Johns | 2003 | 2005 |
| 4 | 
|
Bo Lidegaard | 2005 | 2007 |
| 5 | 
|
Thomas Ahrenkiel | 2007 | 2010 |
| 6 | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen | 2010 | 2013 |
| 7 | Lars Gert Lose | 2013 | 2015 | |
| 8 | 
|
Michael Starbæk Christensen | 2015 | 2019 |
| 9 | _at_NATO_on_25_November_2024_-_NATO_Cyber_Defence_Conference_(54168104383)_(cropped).jpg)
|
Jean-Charles Ellermann-Kingombe | 2019 | 2024 |
| 10 | |
Anders Tang Friborg | 2024 | |
References
[edit]- ^ Bjørknæs, Lars (2024-08-22). "385 embedsmænd i ministerierne tjener over 1 million kroner : Her er de – og deres lønninger" (in Danish). Retrieved 2025-03-17.
- ^ Schonfeld, Zach (28 September 2022). "US officials speak with Danish counterparts about 'apparent sabotage' of Nord Stream pipelines". The Hill. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
- ^ "Fødselsdage: Niels Egelund". Det fri Aktuelt. 4 July 1996. p. 23.
- ^ Kjærgaard, Jan (29 January 1995). "Nyrup opruster for 20 mill". Ekstra Bladet. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ a b "Runde tal i dag: Niels Egelund". Berlingske. 4 July 1996. Retrieved 17 March 2025 – via Infomedia.
- ^ "Statsministeriet – History". 27 July 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-07-27. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
- ^ "Statsministeriet – Organisation". 15 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-04-15. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
- ^ "Statsministeriet – History". 27 July 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-07-27. Retrieved 2024-02-20.