Denmark to raise military spending, citing Russian threat

Denmark's Finance Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen speaks to reporters at after a hearing in the parliamentary financial committee about the custom control agreement at the Christianborg Palace in Copenhagen June 10, 2011. REUTERS/Marie Hald/Scanpix

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - NATO member Denmark plans to increase military spending in response to Russian missile deployments in the Baltic region that it perceives as a threat, its new defence minister said in an interview published on Friday.

But Claus Hjort Frederiksen said that despite pressure from allies including incoming U.S. President Donald Trump, Denmark was not able to meet the NATO defence spending target of 2 percent of gross domestic product.