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Denmark's historic vote on EU defense pact gets underway
Pablo Gutierrez in Brussels
Europe;Denmark
Copenhagen has exercised its opt-out 235 times in 29 years. /Ritzau Scanpix/Reuters

Copenhagen has exercised its opt-out 235 times in 29 years. /Ritzau Scanpix/Reuters

People in Denmark headed to the polls on Tuesday to vote on whether or not to maintain the country's opt-out from the European Union's collective defense policy. 

Denmark is a founding member of The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), but up until now, the country has stayed out of EU military issues and troop commitments. 

Copenhagen has exercised its opt-out 235 times in 29 years. It dates back to 1992 when the Maastricht Treaty incorporated the European Economic Community into the European Union. 

Danes rejected the treaty in a referendum that same year, and as a result the country's government obtained exemptions allowing it to remain outside the EU single currency and the bloc's common policies on defense, home affairs and justice. 

The treaty was then approved by a majority of Danes the following year. 

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The referendum in Denmark comes amid other major shifts in Nordic security policy. Sweden and Finland recently applied to join NATO and Denmark has boosted military spending in response to the conflict in Ukraine.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced plans for Tuesday's referendum two weeks after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began. 

If voters choose to do away with the opt-out, Denmark could begin contributing to EU military training missions like those in Somalia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. /Ritzau Scanpix/Reuters

If voters choose to do away with the opt-out, Denmark could begin contributing to EU military training missions like those in Somalia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. /Ritzau Scanpix/Reuters

In the final stages of the campaign, the 'Yes' camp's messaging was aimed at getting people to come out to vote. 

"We must always cast our ballots when there is a vote," Frederiksen said in a final televised debate on Sunday. "I believe with all my heart that we have to vote 'Yes.' At a time when we need to fight for security in Europe, we need to be more united with our neighbors," she said. 

If voters choose to do away with the opt-out, Denmark could begin contributing to EU military training missions like those in Somalia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. 

Eleven out of the 14 parties in the Danish parliament campaigned in favor of taking part in EU defense and security policy. Two far-right Eurosceptic parties - the Danish People's Party and The New Right - as well as the far-left Unity List called for Danes to say 'No.'

One of their main arguments was that opting in to common EU defense schemes would come at the expense of NATO, which has been the cornerstone of Denmark's defense policy since the alliance was formed in 1949.

Denmark's autonomous territories of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, which are not in the EU, did not participate in the referendum. 

In December 2015, Danes voted 'No' to strengthening their cooperation with the EU on police and security matters amid fears of ceding powers to Brussels on immigration.

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