Women should be open to being conscripted into the military in light of the threat posed by Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Denmark’s defence minister suggested this week.
Jakob Ellemann-Jensen, the deputy prime minister and minister of defence of Denmark said that at present, the NATO country is unable to defend itself and therefore should seek to expand the ranks of it’s armed forces.
Appearing on TV2, the defence minister said that this effort should include expanding conscription, including drafting women into the military. Ellemann-Jensen, of the centre-right Liberal Party, said that the country cannot merely rely on volunteers and therefore should consider changing laws surrounding conscription to allow everyone, including women, to be eligible for the draft, the Copenhagen Post reported.
“The armed forces would benefit from more women coming,” he said, going on to warn that “if Putin wins this war, he will continue… He must lose.”
The defence minister’s comments drew some pushback in Denmark, including from within the Social Democrat party of Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, the second woman to serve as the elected leader of the country.
