"We’re in a serious and deteriorating security situation, and that is why we are building up the defense and strengthening our combat power," Danish Defense Minister Jeppe Bruus told reporters.
Danish Defense Minister Jeppe Bruus’ announcement and aims
Yesterday Bruus announced that Denmark will acquire two long-range strike systems: Anthem long-range weapons from U.S.-based Covenant and Joint Strike Missiles (JSM) from Norway’s Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace. He said the purchases would strengthen Denmark’s ability to respond to an attack and strike targets "behind enemy lines," according to Reuters. The government has not disclosed the number of missiles, total value of the buys, or expected delivery dates.
Covenant’s Anthem: a ground-launched, lower-cost long-range option
Covenant’s Anthem is described by the company and observers as a weapon that blurs the line between long-range kamikaze drones and traditional cruise missiles. Covenant has not publicly disclosed the official range; unconfirmed reports cited in the announcement put Anthem at roughly 740 miles (1,200 kilometers). The system is said to carry a warhead weighing more than 200 kilograms (441 pounds), use a solid rocket motor for launch boost before transitioning to a heavy-fuel jet engine for cruise flight, and has appeared in test imagery handled on the ground with a tricycle undercarriage—possibly indicating rocket-assisted runway takeoffs.
Covenant reported it has conducted more than 200 test flights of Anthem and secured roughly $150 million in orders, and the company has outlined plans to establish missile production in Germany and Israel. The firm also disclosed that an unidentified international customer was expected to begin receiving German-built weapons before the end of this year. U.S. Army deliveries are expected in 2027 under an accelerated qualification contract.
The cyber insurance questionnaire just landed. Now what?
SOC 2, HIPAA, insurance renewals - someone has to own security strategy. Nubivance provides fractional CISO leadership without the full-time salary.
Get a security leadKongsberg’s Joint Strike Missile (JSM) and Denmark’s F-35 fleet
The JSM is an air-launched cruise missile developed by Kongsberg in cooperation with Raytheon. It is designed to be carried internally and externally on the A and C variants of the F-35 and has been fit-checked for external carriage on a range of other tactical jets. Kongsberg identified Denmark as the seventh country to select JSM, though the final contract scope and value remain subject to negotiations.
JSM is an enlarged derivative of the Naval Strike Missile (NSM). Kongsberg has said the missile can fly to ranges of more than 300 nautical miles, but that maximum reach depends on the altitude and speed at release and is reduced when the missile employs a low-altitude penetration profile. The JSM carries a 260-pound warhead and uses GPS, inertial navigation, and terrain mapping for guidance; it switches to an imaging infrared seeker in the terminal phase for precise discrimination. That seeker is passive, reducing RF emissions and vulnerability to conventional jamming. The missile also features a two-way datalink to receive mid-course targeting updates or redirections, and design elements to reduce signature and improve survivability. Reported unit cost for JSM is approximately $2.8 million.
Denmark’s force posture: F-35 expansion, PULS and complementary roles
The two acquisitions are explicitly complementary: Anthem is ground-launched while JSM is air-launched, expanding the range of platforms Denmark can use for stand-off precision strikes. Denmark’s F-35As are its only tactical jets following the retirement of the country’s F-16 Vipers in January. Copenhagen announced an expansion of its F-35 fleet from 27 to 43 aircraft in October 2025, a move the reporting links directly to providing a larger platform base for air-launched long-range strikes.
Denmark is also introducing Israel’s PULS (Precise and Universal Launch System) rocket artillery; PULS currently appears to be fielded in Danish service with artillery rockets. In Danish service, PULS will provide flexible rocket artillery while Anthem is intended to offer a cruise-missile-like option for longer-range precision attacks. The reporting notes potential operational overlap—air-launched JSMs provide mobility and flexibility tied to available aircraft, while a ground-launched weapon like Anthem can be fired without committing fighters. Dutch F-35As demonstrated the ability to provide targeting data to PULS launchers during a NATO exercise last year, illustrating cross-platform interactions NATO members are practicing.
How NATO allies, the Royal Danish Air Force, and Moscow are positioned
- NATO allies: The purchase fits a broader European push to restore and expand deep-strike capabilities. The reporting cites other national efforts — Latvia’s acquisition of long-range missiles, Poland’s layered expansions, and a multinational European Long-Range Strike Approach (ELSA) initiative involving France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom — as part of the same trend among alliance members to field more extended-range options.
- Royal Danish Air Force and Danish military planners: Denmark will add an air-launched, internally-carried high-end munition in JSM alongside a potentially more affordable, mass-producible ground-launched option in Anthem. The planned F-35 fleet expansion to 43 jets increases the service’s capacity to employ air-launched stand-off weapons.
- Moscow: The announcement prompted a sharp reaction from Russia’s embassy in Copenhagen, which accused Denmark of pursuing confrontation with Russia and warned of "inevitable disastrous consequences," according to Reuters.
Bruus framed the purchases as a "strong signal that we have the ability to strike back," and Copenhagen links the move to earlier government decisions to pursue long-range offensive precision weapons amid concerns stemming from Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine. Denmark has made clear it intends to add both higher-end air-launched strike capability and a more readily producible ground-launched option to its toolkit; precise quantities, costs, and delivery timelines remain undisclosed by the Danish government.