US firm to help track down Afghan interpreters

Defence minister gets Mission Essential Personnel to agree to reach out to the 37 interpreters it hired for the Danish forces and who could be entitled to asylum

The American firm that hired Afghan interpreters for the Danish forces has agreed to help the Defence Ministry track them down.

In May, the government offered to help the almost 200 interpreters who were hired to assist the Danish forces and whose lives may now be at risk after the withdrawal of Danish forces. Depending on the level of risk they face, the interpreters could either be offered help in Afghanistan or the opportunity of asylum in Denmark.

While 17 interpreters have applied for help, the government had no information about the identities of 37 interpreters who were hired through the US firm Mission Essential Personnel (MEP).

MEP had previously ignored Defence Ministry requests for information about the interpreters but today, the defence minister, Nicolai Wammen (Socialdemokraterne), announced from Washington that he had made a deal with the head of MEP.

“If Afghan interpreters approach the Danish authorities and say that they have worked for us through the Americans we can now check if that is right,” Wammen told DR Nyheder. “And if it is correct that we can quickly start to process their case.”

Wammen is in the US to meet with US Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel, but took the time to reach out to MEP after announcing that resolving the issue of the Afghan interpreters was his ministry’s top priority.

“I think the military and my predecessor’s efforts to get in touch with the firm have been good,” Wammen said, referring to the former defence minister, Nick Hækkerup (Socialdemokraterne). “But as minister, I decided to push the issue.”

MEP has agreed to provide information about the interpreters to the Danish government as well as to reach out directly to the interpreters and inform them of their rights to seek help from the Danish authorities.

TOP STORIES

  • Diplomatic tensions between US and Denmark after spying rumors

    Diplomatic tensions between US and Denmark after spying rumors

    A Wall Street Journal article describes that the US will now begin spying in Greenland. This worries the Danish foreign minister, who wants an explanation from the US’s leading diplomat. Greenlandic politicians think that Trump’s actions increase the sense of insecurity

  • Diplomacy meets Westeros: a dinner with the King, Queen – and Jaime Lannister

    Diplomacy meets Westeros: a dinner with the King, Queen – and Jaime Lannister

    What do King Frederik X, Queen Mary, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, and Jaime Lannister have in common? No, this isn’t the start of a very specific Shakespeare-meets-HBO fanfiction — it was just Wednesday night in Denmark

  • Huge boost to halt dropouts from vocational education

    Huge boost to halt dropouts from vocational education

    For many years, most young people in Denmark have preferred upper secondary school (Gymnasium). Approximately 20 percent of a year group chooses a vocational education. Four out of 10 young people drop out of a vocational education. A bunch of millions aims to change that

  • Beloved culture house saved from closure

    Beloved culture house saved from closure

    At the beginning of April, it was reported that Kapelvej 44, a popular community house situated in Nørrebro, was at risk of closing due to a loss of municipality funding

  • Mette Frederiksen: “If you harm the country that is hosting you, you shouldn’t be here at all”

    Mette Frederiksen: “If you harm the country that is hosting you, you shouldn’t be here at all”

    With reforms to tighten the rules for foreigners in Denmark without legal residency, and the approval of a reception package for internationals working in the care sector, internationals have been under the spotlight this week. Mette Frederiksen spoke about both reforms yesterday.

  • Tolerated, but barely: inside Denmark’s departure centers

    Tolerated, but barely: inside Denmark’s departure centers

    Currently, around 170 people live on “tolerated stay” in Denmark, a status for people who cannot be deported but are denied residency and basic rights. As SOS Racisme draws a concerning picture of their living conditions in departure centers, such as Kærshovedgård, they also suggest it might be time for Denmark to reinvent its policies on deportation

Connect club

Connect Club is your gateway to a vibrant programme of events and an international community in Denmark.

Sign up here

Career

Want to advertise your job with CPH Post?

Contact us

Jobs