The opposition voiced their angry concerns that the new jet fighter deal was conducted in pure secrecy and was undemocratic, in a recent joint article. Besides, both the government and the parties to the agreement only discussed which model to choose and turned a deaf ear to whether new fighter jets were needed altogether.
Other than being expensive, the F-35 is reported to have major technical problems, which could magnify its already extravagant cost.
"The deal has been arranged for roughly 10 years, yet the process has been hermetically sealed, with the emerging information being incredibly scarce, despite numerous experts, pilots and high-ranking army staff being questioned. Negotiations have taken place behind closed doors at remote offices in the Ministry of Defense," Eva Flyvholm and Rene Gade maintain in the article published in Politiken.
"We are facing the greatest public procurement in Denmark's history, but the parties to the agreement will not give a direct answer how the fighter jet deal is to be financed. This is a very irresponsible way to use our common tax money. Such an obscurity does not benefit our democracy," Eva Flyvholm and Rene Gade conclude, arguing that is yet not too late to reconsider.
An earlier assessment from NATO dissuaded Denmark from the fighter jet deal worth up to 4.5 billion dollars according to various estimates.
"The purchase of new fighter aircraft and the cost of keeping them in the air will be a threat to both the Danish economy and the rest of the Danish defense," the NATO report said in January this year.
