Public opposes acting without UN approval in Syria

The head of parliament’s foreign affairs commission said that Danes just need some time to get used to the idea of intervention without the UN

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Aug 28, 2013

Denmark will have a difficult time finding public support for any kind of intervention in Syria without a clear UN resolution, according to a recent poll.

A survey compiled by Gallup for Berlingske newspaper showed that 64 percent of respondents either disagree or somewhat disagree that the Danish defence should join a coalition attack on Syria without UN approval.

Just 23 percent of Danes would support such a move, while 13 percent are in doubt.

Head of foreign affairs committee: Get used to it
While the opposition parties remains split on the issue, PM Helle Thorning-Schmidt (Socialdemokraterne) is not in doubt.

“We can’t sit back and let Syria gas its own population. Our closest allies indicate that Assad is behind this and we must discuss how we can stop it,” Thorning-Schmidt told Berlingske.

Mette Gjerskov (Socialdemokraterne), the head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said that the public reaction was natural, but that Danes needed some time to get used to the idea of intervention without the UN.

“The government’s clear aim is to follow the UN, but we owe it to the Danish people to tell them that it is a dead end," Gjerskov told Politiken newspaper. "We have a security council with Russia and China, both of which are against intervention. Even now, when little doubt remains in regards to the gas attack in Syria coming from President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the two nations still won’t change their opinion.”

Proof on Thursday
Gjerskov went on to say that the US and the UK were almost certain that Assad used chemical weapons and she expected some evidence that would verify that in the near future.

”I understand that the Danes want to follow the UN road, but this is actually also a UN responsibility. We must protect the civilians," Gjerskov told Politiken. "But, we have to see where this leads and we have not been asked to contribute militarily yet."

Gjerskov could see some proof of Assad’s reported atrocities shortly after government sources in Washington told The Washington Post newspaper that they would reveal compelling evidence on Thursday.