Relationship dossier
People's Republic of China
Denmark
Relationship assessment
Pragmatic partnership with cooperation on green issues and recurring human-rights and security friction
People's Republic of China toward Denmark
+20China established a comprehensive strategic partnership with Denmark in 2008 and has pursued bilateral cooperation, including on green development. Chinese involvement in sensitive Danish infrastructure has also become contentious.
Denmark toward People's Republic of China
+15Denmark has maintained bilateral cooperation with China under the comprehensive strategic partnership, including green cooperation. Danish criticism of Chinese human-rights policies and restrictions on Chinese involvement in sensitive infrastructure have caused friction.
Overall relationship
+15The relationship combines a durable strategic-partnership framework and practical cooperation with recurring disagreements over human rights and security. This supports a modestly cooperative overall characterization, without indicating a close or untroubled partnership.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
China and Denmark have maintained a pragmatic relationship that includes a comprehensive strategic partnership and cooperation on areas such as climate and green development. Relations also face friction over human rights and security policy, while Denmark has restricted some forms of Chinese involvement in sensitive infrastructure. The scope and implementation of bilateral cooperation are not fully clear.
Areas of tension
- Danish criticism of Chinese human-rights policies
- Danish restrictions on Chinese involvement in sensitive infrastructure
Key developments
China and Denmark established a comprehensive strategic partnership, providing a framework for bilateral cooperation.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of cooperation under the strategic partnership are unclear.
- The extent to which security restrictions affect broader bilateral cooperation is uncertain.