Dear ministers, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning,

It is a pleasure to begin our two-day visit to your lovely country by opening the official Danish business conference in the Netherlands.

Our scheduled June 2020 visit was transformed into a virtual business conference by November later that year because of the pandemic. Although we were able to meet in virtual terms, allowing for excellent exchanges on solutions for green transition, it cannot compete with the opportunities tied to the current visit.

Deep and longstanding diplomatic and commercial ties characterize the relation between The Netherlands and Denmark. From farming and sea fares to green transition technologies and digital healthcare - providing prosperity and welfare have always been at the heart of our two countries’ priorities.

Over 500 years ago, Dutch farmers settled in Denmark upon invitation by my ancestor King Christian II. He had heard about the innovative farming from the Waterland area in the Netherlands.

Your know-how and ingenuity were already in high demand back then. For many years to come, Dutch settlers supplied the Danish court with fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

Craftsmanship and innovation were also shown at sea. Back in 1996 and 1997, five ships were excavated in Christianshavn - a historic harbour of Copenhagen.

It turned out they were dating back to a period between 1559 and 1648. The time of the reigns of the famous King Frederik II and King Christian IV. It also turned out that the largest ships were Dutch built. Because the state-of-the-art ship construction at the time was – of course – Dutch.

Since these early exchanges took place, our commercial and cultural ties have only grown closer. Today, the potential for investments and collaboration between our businesses are even greater and more important. 

We find ourselves at a time where the world is facing multiple and severe challenges: The climate disorder. The war in Ukraine. Covid-19. We are all suffering from the impact as these global crises unfold. Clearly, we must stand united and work together to find solutions to overcome them.

A month ago the Dutch and Danish prime ministers along with the German Chancellor, the Belgian Prime Minister and the President of the European Commisssion met in Esbjerg – a Danish Coastal city not far from the Dutch border – and signed the “Esbjerg-Declaration” committing themselves to the target of creating an extra 150 GW of wind energy from the North Sea. An ambitious but necessary step in the green transition.

In other words, The Netherlands and Denmark are frontrunners. We share an innovative mindset, and we set ambitious goals. Because we want to create a sustainable world for the generations to come. Both our countries are champions of the Sustainable Development Goals – and everyone gathered here today are focused on how to reach them.

With today’s business visit, we strengthen our ties in new partnerships for green transition and healthcare solutions. Many pioneering businesses are present today. Together, they represent the innovative expertise needed for sustainable societies.

The next two days, the Crown Princess and I look forward to experiencing some of the many solutions needed to build a better future for all. I hope to see partnerships between Danish and Dutch businesses further deepen and grow – partnerships and cooperation between friends have never been more important.

With these words, I would like to wish everyone a successful conference.

Thank you.

 

(Det talte ord gælder)