Denmark to buy Kongsberg, Covenant missiles for new long-range strike option

COLOGNE, Germany — The Danish government plans to buy two types of “long-range,” precision-strike missiles, one air-launched and one ground-launched, to retaliate against adversaries after an attack on the country, officials announced on Thursday.

The shopping list includes the Kongsberg-made Joint Strike Missile, which F-35 fighter aircraft can carry, and the Anthem missile by U.S.-based company Covenant as a ground-launched option, Defense Minister Jeppe Bruus said.

Officials released few details, leaving open the question of when the armed forces would receive the missiles, how many of them and at what cost, broadcaster TV2 reported in a live blog of a defense ministry press conference about the planned acquisitions.

Long-range missiles are very much en vogue in Europe at the moment, as countries are equipping themselves as a deterrent against Russian aggression. Governments here consider the capability to strike back on their own all the more urgent because U.S. assistance with such weaponry in case of a conflict is considered uncertain under the presidency of Donald Trump.

The ranges of strike missiles labeled as long-range are a bit of a guessing game, as manufacturers and governments keep performance information close to their chests so as to avoid tipping off adversaries. Typically, they fall in the range of 500 kilometers to 1,500 kilometers, depending on engine and warhead configurations.

Danish officials cite a NATO contribution target as a key motivator for the envisioned weapons class, which would constitute a qualitatively new capability for the small country, according to TV2. Copenhagen is on the hook to offer the alliance a long-range strike capability by 2030, according to the defense ministry.

“These acquisitions represent a significant step toward improving Denmark’s self-defense capabilities, strengthening NATO, and enhancing our capacity to strike back,” Defense Minister Bruus was quoted as saying in an agency statement.

According to TV2, the envisioned Anthem missiles for Denmark, which have never seen combat, are to be produced in Germany. Manufacturer Covenant announced a new production site in Leipzig, Germany, last month, claiming it could churn out missiles there beginning in early 2027.

The German defense ministry has so far said only that there are talks with Covenant about buying the weapons to plug Germany’s long-range strike gap.

The manufacturer’s pitch is that Anthem missiles will be cheaper than products available on the market now. Reuters has previously reported a mid-six-figure target price per unit set by company executives during serial production.

Sebastian Sprenger is associate editor for Europe at Defense News, reporting on the state of the defense market in the region, and on U.S.-Europe cooperation and multi-national investments in defense and global security. Previously he served as managing editor for Defense News. He is based in Cologne, Germany.

德国科隆——丹麦官员周四宣布，丹麦政府计划购买两种“远程”精确打击导弹，一种是空射导弹，一种是陆基导弹，以便在该国遭受袭击后对敌对势力进行报复。

国防部长杰佩·布鲁斯表示，采购清单包括康斯伯格公司制造的联合打击导弹（F-35战斗机可以携带）以及美国科文特公司制造的“圣歌”导弹（一种陆基发射导弹）。

据TV2电视台在国防部新闻发布会上直播报道，官员们并未透露太多细节，武装部队何时接收导弹、接收多少导弹以及成本是多少等问题仍未得到解答。

目前，远程导弹在欧洲非常流行，各国都在积极部署此类武器以威慑俄罗斯的侵略行为。由于在唐纳德·特朗普总统的领导下，美国在冲突中是否会提供此类武器援助尚不明朗，因此欧洲各国政府认为具备独立反击能力显得尤为迫切。

所谓远程打击导弹的射程很难精确估算，因为制造商和政府为了避免泄露给对手，通常会严加保密性能信息。一般来说，它们的射程在500公里到1500公里之间，具体取决于发动机和弹头配置。

据丹麦TV2电视台报道，丹麦官员表示，北约的贡献目标是推动他们研发这一新型武器的关键因素，这将为这个小国带来全新的能力。丹麦国防部称，哥本哈根有义务在2030年前向北约提供远程打击能力。

“这些采购标志着丹麦在提高自卫能力、加强北约以及增强反击能力方面迈出了重要一步，”国防部长布鲁斯在一份官方声明中表示。

据TV2报道，丹麦计划采购的“圣歌”（Anthem）导弹从未投入实战，将在德国生产。制造商Covenant公司上个月宣布在德国莱比锡新建一家生产基地，并声称最早可于2027年初开始在该基地生产导弹。

德国国防部目前只表示，正在与 Covenant 公司洽谈购买这些武器，以弥补德国远程打击能力的不足。

制造商宣称，Anthem导弹的价格将低于目前市场上同类产品。路透社此前曾报道，该公司高管在批量生产阶段设定的单价目标为六位数中段。

塞巴斯蒂安·斯普伦格是《防务新闻》欧洲版副主编，负责报道该地区的防务市场状况，以及美欧在防务和全球安全领域的合作和多国投资。此前，他曾担任《防务新闻》执行主编。他现居德国科隆。