On March 5th the Danish tabloid newspaper, B.T., published a poll of public attitudes towards Missile Defence. Almost half (46 percent) answers yes when asked: "Should the Danish government officially reject US plans on building missile defines systems?"

Among voters supporting the two parties in government, The Social Democrats and the small centrist Liberal Party (Radikale Venstre) the proportion of those who answered yes was 52 percent. The proportion of those answering no was 27 percent among Social Democrat voters and 24 percent amongst Liberal Party voters.

The poll also asked: "Should the US be permitted to build a missile defence system by expanding the radar facility at the Thule-base in Greenland?" Overall 51 percent said no. Among Social Democrat voters 61 percent said no and 23 percent said yes. Amongst Liberal Party voters, 59 percent said no and 17 percent said yes. The size of the polling sample was not revealed. The polling was carried out in late february.

The Danish press has carried several long articles on MD. After the poll was done the debate and the coverage has exploded, especially in connection with a visit by the foreign minister Mogens Lykketoft to Washington. The Foreign Minister has stressed that Denmark will not take a position on MD until more is known about the system's architecture and until there is an official request for the use of Thule. However, he has also stressed the risks connected with Missile Defense, especially the possibility of an arms race in Asia.

On Monday evening the major TV station, Danish Radio, carried a 40 minute feature on MD, including interviews with Richard Perle and Timothy Garden. In addition, a late night program, Deadline, carried a 7 minute report, including an interview with Lisbeth Gronlund of the Union of Concerned Scientists and details of their "Countermeasures" report. Lisbeth Gronlund was also interviewed on Tuesday in two dailies (Information and Aktuelt).

The US Embassy is very active. A group of politicians last week travelled to Brussels and Rome (NATO defence college) guided by the US ambassador. In addition, The Danish Reserve Officers association was invited for a meeting at the US Embassy last week. Also the number two at the Embassy, allegedly a MD-specialist, gave a lecture in the Society on War Science. Many high ranking officers were present. The speech was a disaster - only hot air, one general said privately - and the meeting ended one hour early.