Rigsfællesskabet
| Commonwealth of the Realm
Rigsfælleskabet (Danish)
Ríkisfelagsskapur (Faroese) Naalagaaffeqatigiit (Kalaallisut) |
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.svg) Map showing the Danish realm in red
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| Official language(s) | Danish, Faroese and Greenlandic | |
| Leaders | ||
| - | Monarch | Queen Margrethe II |
| - | Prime Minister of Denmark | Helle Thorning-Schmidt |
| - | Prime Minister of Greenland | Kuupik Kleist |
| - | Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands | Kaj Leo Johannesen |
Rigsfællesskabet (Danish: The Commonwealth of the Realm, or sometimes rendered as the United Kingdom of Denmark[1][2]) is a semi-official Danish term for the relations between metropolitan Denmark and its two self-governing insular regions, the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which collectively make up the Kingdom of Denmark, a unitary state.
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[edit] Legal status
Within the Kingdom of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland enjoy far-reaching home rule, introduced in 1948 and 1979 respectively. Greenland's powers of self-government were increased in 2009, through the Greenland Self-Rule Act, while the Faroe Islands have gradually taken control of more and more areas according to their Home Rule Act. The Constitution of Denmark of 1953 is that of a unitary state and applies to all three regions, and the home rule and self-rule agreements are not enshrined in the constitution. Both the Faroe Islands and Greenland manage most of their own internal affairs. They may also conclude international agreements on behalf of the Danish realm if they concern only their own part of the realm.
One of the results of this arrangement is that Denmark is a member of the European Union but both Greenland and the Faroe Islands have opted to remain outside of the EU. The relations should not be confused with a federation or an association like the Commonwealth of Nations. It is one state with two self-governing areas, and as such it can be referred to as a federacy. The Faroe Islands and Greenland are represented with two seats each in the Folketing, the Danish parliament.
[edit] The international community
Previously, most foreign relations were undertaken by Denmark exclusively on behalf of all three regions, but more recently, both regions have increased their role in the foreign policy. The Faroe Islands and Greenland have become more autonomous players and they have joint influence on foreign policy issues that relate to their national interests, such as geopolitical topics and commercial fishing. However, the regions still are, in an international-community context, under Danish administration, where The Faroe Islands and Greenland have joined the different Danish delegations at the table of the international community.
The Faroe Islands and Greenland have membership in the Nordic Council. They have become more integrated with the European Union, but neither country is a member. Greenland had to follow Denmark into the EU in 1973, but opted to leave in 1985 after Greenlandic home rule was introduced in 1979, this being the only country to ever leave the EU. Greenland and the Faroes are only semi-members in the United Nations, NATO, OECD and the World Trade Organization, because Denmark represents the Rigsfællesskab. Denmark have in the last years increased the involvement of the Faroese and Greenlandic governments in international affairs, for example Greenland was included in the process of a new treaty between Denmark and the US regarding the Thule Air Base in northwest Greenland.
[edit] Population and area
| Country | Population | % | Area (km²) | % | Density (Pop per km²) |
 Denmark |
5,519,441 | 98,1% | 43,094 | 1,98% | 128 |
 Faroe Islands |
49,006 | 0,9% | 1,399 | 0,06% | 34 |
 Greenland |
57,564 | 1,0% | 2,175,600 | 97,96% | 0.026 |
[edit] See also
- Denmark
- Greenland
- Faroe Islands
- Kingdom of Iceland, a part of the Danish state with home rule 1874-1918, and an independent state in personal union with Denmark 1918-1944
[edit] References
- ^ Duelund, Peter (23–24 October 2007). "Cultural policies and development trends". Workshop “Cultural identity and diversity”. Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. p. 12. http://www.ambhanoi.um.dk/NR/rdonlyres/A8423019-D802-497C-A1AE-ECAB24BE5B61/0/CulturalPolicyanddevelopmenttrendsbyPeterDuelund300907.doc. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
- ^ "Denmark — an Overview". Factsheet Denmark. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. pp. 6–7. http://www.westbalkan.um.dk/NR/rdonlyres/84DA172E-87B5-4A06-8E4C-3803ADF5F2FF/0/Denmark__an_Overview.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
