King Frederik X of Denmark, given that Social Democratic leader and long-time pro-Ukrainian Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen was unable to secure sufficient support to form a government, has entrusted this task to the current Minister of Defense and leader of the Liberal Party, Troels Lund Poulsen. This is stated in a press release from the Danish Royal Palace.
“Representatives of the Liberal Party, the Danish People’s Party, the Liberal Alliance, the Moderates, the Conservative People’s Party, the Danish Democrats, and the Civic Party—which together hold 87 seats—recommended that Liberal Party leader Troels Lund Poulsen lead the negotiations on forming a government,” reads the statement following the king’s meeting with representatives of political parties on the Royal Palace’s website, which took place on the evening of May 8.
Representatives of the Social Democratic Party, the Socialist People’s Party, the Red-Green Alliance, the Radical Left Party, and the Alternative, which together hold 84 seats, advised that incumbent Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen be tasked with leading the government formation talks once again.
Following this, the king received Frederiksen, who, in light of the parties’ statements, advised Frederik X to entrust Poulsen with leading such negotiations.
Accordingly, the king asked Poulsen to lead the negotiations on forming a government.
On May 8, Mette Frederiksen informed the king that, following the first round of negotiations, she had been unable to secure sufficient support from the parties to form a government. In the Danish parliamentary elections on March 24, Frederiksen’s Social Democrats won, but the centrist party of incumbent Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen secured the “golden share” with 14 seats.
Subsequently, Rasmussen, who serves as foreign minister in Frederiksen’s government, issued an ultimatum to her.
TK-Home Textiles, part of the Textile-Contact (TK Group) of companies, shipped goods worth over EUR160,000 to a customer in Denmark, marking the largest export shipment since the start of this year, according to TK Group owner Oleksandr Sokolovskyi.
“We’ve had our largest export shipment since the start of the year—two full truckloads of products manufactured by TK-Home Textiles were shipped to Denmark. And this is just for one client who started working with us very cautiously last year but has already increased the order volume fivefold since the start of the year compared to 2025,” Sokolovsky wrote on Facebook.
He reported that the shipment included jackets, thermal underwear, knitwear (sweaters, hats, scarves), and children’s shoes.
“And while we’ve only recently started manufacturing shoes ourselves at the factory in Chyhyryn (which we took over), we’ve been sewing all other items for a long time at our own production facilities in Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Odesa. Cotton fabrics and insulation (siliconized synthetic down) also come from our own factories, which allows us to minimize costs and remain independent of imports with their constant logistical risks,” the post reads.
Sokolovsky emphasized that the company’s European partners primarily value geographical proximity and fast logistics; full-cycle, diversified production—from the creation of threads and fabric to the finished product; the quality of natural cotton materials; consistent quality control at every stage; as well as “fair and competitive prices.”
“The last point is very important because all customers are counting their money, and we have to withstand fierce competition from Chinese, Turkish, and other powerful manufacturers who, at the same time, operate in peaceful and stable conditions without facing our military, energy, personnel, and other risks,” he emphasized.
Sokolovsky also added that it has become more difficult for Ukrainian manufacturers to “compete” for European customers, and the company must constantly prove that even in the event of force majeure at any of the TK-Group factories, other factories will cover the orders and the products will be shipped on time.
“While in 2022–2023 European customers genuinely sympathized with us and sincerely tried to support us with orders, over the past couple of years—even when we offer competitive prices and guarantee quality—it has been very difficult to turn discussions into signed contracts. Whether they’ve ‘grown tired’ of our war, whether their insurance companies are giving them a hard time, or whether it’s just politics—who knows… But their protocols point to risks, and it’s easier for them to turn us down and shift orders somewhere in Asia,” he wrote.
In addition, the owner of “TK-Group” emphasized that we must fight for every foreign client also because demand for textile products in the domestic market has significantly decreased for obvious reasons (population decline and reduced purchasing power).
“Cheap imports, mostly contraband, have unfortunately not disappeared either,” the post notes.
“TK-Home Textiles” is a leading manufacturer of fabrics, home textiles, and children’s products in Ukraine. Its portfolio of assets includes one of the few finishing factories in Ukraine producing cotton fabrics in Chernihiv, “TK-DT Chernihiv.” Its assets also include sewing factories in Kyiv, Ternopil, Chernihiv, and Odesa; a shoe factory in Chyhyryn; a knitting facility; and a synthetic fiber production facility in Chernihiv.
As reported, the countries importing “TK DT” products include Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Georgia, France, Romania, Sweden, and Slovakia.
TK Group was founded in 1995. It currently operates as a holding company that encompasses the full range of services in the textile industry—from raw materials and yarns to finished solutions for B2B, B2G, and B2C clients. The group’s founder is Sokolovsky, chairman of the Light Industry Defense Procurement Committee at the Federation of Employers of Ukraine.
The results of a survey conducted in March 2026 by the research company Active Group in collaboration with the Experts Club information and analytical center indicate a consistently positive attitude among Ukrainians toward Denmark, although a slight decline in the overall level of positive assessments has been recorded compared to August 2025. The share of respondents who view Denmark positively stands at 69.9%, down from 73.7% previously. At the same time, negative assessments remain at a minimal level—1.2% compared to 1.3% in the previous period.
In the breakdown of responses, 33.3% of Ukrainians chose the option “completely positive,” while another 36.6% selected “mostly positive.” A neutral attitude was expressed by 26.8% of respondents, indicating a certain degree of distance in the perception of the country, despite the generally high positive sentiment.
The negative segment remains marginal: 0.7% of respondents answered “mostly negative,” and only 0.5% — “completely negative.” Another 2.1% of respondents were undecided. This distribution of assessments underscores that Denmark belongs to the group of countries with the lowest level of critical perception among Ukrainians.
Comparative trends show that the decline in positive assessments occurred primarily due to an increase in neutral responses, rather than a shift into the negative segment. This indicates a gradual shift in perception from emotionally positive to more restrained or less defined.
“Ukrainians do not perceive the world in black-and-white terms and evaluate different countries quite thoughtfully. Where the level of awareness or informational presence is lower, a neutral stance is more likely to form. At the same time, countries that demonstrate consistent support maintain a high level of trust even amid certain fluctuations in indicators,” noted Oleksandr Pozniy, director of the research company Active Group.
Overall, Denmark continues to rank among the countries with the best image in Ukrainian society. A slight decline in positive perception does not alter the overall picture, which is characterized by stable trust, a low level of criticism, and the absence of significant polarization in assessments.
According to a study conducted by the Experts Club information and analytical center based on data from the State Customs Service, Denmark ranks 30th in total trade volume with Ukraine, which amounts to $671.9 million. At the same time, imports of Danish goods are more than double Ukrainian exports, resulting in a trade deficit of over $231 million.
The study was presented at the Interfax-Ukraine press center; the video can be viewed on the agency’s YouTube channel. The full version of the study can be found at this link on the Experts Club analytical center’s website.
ACTIVE GROUP, DENMARK, EXPERTS CLUB, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, SURVEY, UKRAINE, URAKIN
The Danish government plans to cut the amount of aid provided to Ukraine by almost half, according to Danish public broadcaster DR (Danmarks Radio).
“In response to a request from the Defense Committee, Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said that Denmark will provide 9.4 billion kroner next year. Last year, we provided 16.5 billion kroner, and the year before that, almost 19 billion kroner,” the report said.
Earlier, in 2023, a broad majority in the Danish parliament agreed to create the Ukraine Fund. This is an economic framework that determines how much aid Denmark will provide to Ukraine. To date, Denmark has provided Ukraine with more than 70 billion in military aid.
Denmark is currently the country that has provided Ukraine with the most support as a percentage of GDP. Therefore, according to Simon Kollerup, spokesperson for the Social Democratic Party on defense issues, it is “natural” that support is being reduced.
“We decided to be one of the countries that provided the most extensive support at the beginning of the war. I also think it is fair to say that this support is somewhat more than what one might expect given the size of our country. Therefore, I think it is quite natural that support is gradually decreasing,” he said.
Kollrup also noted that it has not yet been decided politically whether support will remain reduced, despite current decisions.
“I think we will allocate more money than is currently planned. Does this mean that we will necessarily be at the forefront, as we were before? I’m not sure,” he said.
He pointed out that politicians had long ago decided to create a model for the Ukraine Fund, where most of the billions were spent during the first three years of the war. And that the time will soon come for other countries to contribute to this fund.
“We are a small country with a healthy economy and a high capacity for decision-making, so we were actually able to find the funds in our economy to provide significant support at the beginning. But I also believe that there is room for other countries to come on the scene,” Kollrup explained.
In turn, Stinus Lindgren, defense spokesman for the Radical Left party, said that now is not the time to reduce support for Ukraine.
“The problem is that we haven’t allocated new funds for a long time. If we think it’s so important to support Ukraine, and I hear that all parties say so, then right now we need to sit down in parliament and make sure we have the money ready,” he said.
He clarified that he considers the amounts allocated in previous years to be sufficient.
“I believe that we should return to the level we were at in previous years,” he said.
Lindgren added that Ukrainians have been under intense pressure on the battlefield recently. The Kremlin claims that the strategically important city of Pokrovsk, which has been the scene of fierce fighting for a long time, has finally fallen into Russian hands.
“If you look at the situation in Ukraine right now, it is critical. Now is not the time to lower our ambitions. Neither in Denmark nor internationally,” he concluded.
Denmark is investing 10 million Danish kroner (EUR1.34 million) in Ukrainian culture and the restoration of Ukrainian cultural heritage, said Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture Tetiana Berezhna on Monday after meeting with Denmark’s Minister of Culture, Media, and Sport Jakob Engel-Schmidt.
“Denmark is investing 10 million Danish kroner in Ukrainian culture and the restoration of Ukrainian cultural heritage. This was announced today by Danish Minister of Culture, Media and Sport Jakob Engel-Schmidt during our joint press conference. Mr. Engel-Schmidt also noted that their goal is to encourage other countries to follow Denmark’s example. Thank you for your leadership in supporting Ukraine!” Berezhna wrote on her Facebook page.
The minister noted that the Ukrainian delegation joined an informal meeting of European Union ministers of culture and media in Copenhagen.
“We are presenting to our colleagues the mechanics and key objectives of the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Fund, a platform for restoring cultural heritage and strengthening culture. We are showing the figures of the destruction caused by the Russian Federation. We are talking about the top priorities for restoration for the next three years. We will also hold a series of bilateral meetings in Copenhagen with European partners, Danish cultural institutions, and the Ukrainian community,” Berezhna said.
She thanked Denmark for supporting Ukraine’s participation in the event, for its partnership and investment in Ukrainian culture and restoration.
Ukraine will open offices in Berlin and Copenhagen this year to sell arms for export, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced.
“We are opening two export capitals. You know that this is co-production and export, which we talked about, of weapons that we can afford to sell in order to have additional money for our domestic production of scarce items, for which we do not have enough money,” Zelensky said at a briefing on Monday.
According to the president, the opening of the first two representative offices was decided not at the level of companies that will be involved in co-production, but at the level of states.
“The first two capitals are our representative offices, Berlin and Copenhagen. This will happen this year,” the president added.
