- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
- Madueke rescues Chelsea in draw with 10-man Forest
- Beckett's belief rewarded as Bluestocking storms to Arc glory
- Trump on the stump, Harris hits airwaves in razor-edge US election
- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
- England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash
- Penrith Panthers win fourth straight NRL title after downing Storm
- Weary Sinner happy for day off after battling into Shanghai last 16
- Pakistan's Masood warns England still a force without Stokes
- Madrid's Carvajal to miss several months after serious knee injury
- Two elephants die in flash flooding in northern Thailand
- Sabalenka targets world number one and Wuhan hat-trick
- Tunisia votes with Saied set for re-election
- Bagnaia sets 'example' with Japan MotoGP win to cut gap on Martin
- Intense Israeli bombing rocks Beirut ahead of war anniversary
- Mozambique vote: no suspense but some disillusion
- Austrian rapper channels anti-racist rage in Romani hip-hop songs
- Ohtani magic powers Dodgers over Padres in MLB playoff thriller
- Five of the best: Pakistan-England Test thrillers
- Man sets arm on fire as marches across US mark Gaza war anniversary
- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
Denmark votes on scrapping EU defence opt-out
After staying out of the European Union's common defence policy for 30 years, Denmark votes Wednesday in a referendum on whether to overturn its opt-out after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
More than 65 percent of the country's 4.3 million eligible voters are expected to vote in favour of dropping the exemption, the latest opinion poll published on Sunday suggested.
Analysts' predictions have however been cautious, given the low voter turnout expected in a country that has often said "no" to further EU integration, most recently in 2015.
"We must always cast our ballots when there is a vote", Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen urged Danes in the final televised debate of the campaign on Sunday.
"I believe with all my heart that we have to vote yes. At a time when we need to fight for security in Europe, we need to be more united with our neighbours", she said.
Denmark has been an EU member since 1973, but it put the brakes on transferring more power to Brussels in 1992 when 50.7 percent of Danes rejected the Maastricht Treaty, the EU's founding treaty.
It needed to be ratified by all member states to enter into force. In order to persuade Danes to approve the treaty, Copenhagen negotiated a series of exemptions and Danes finally approved it the following year.
Since then, Denmark has remained outside the European single currency, the euro -- which it rejected in a 2000 referendum -- as well as the bloc's common policies on justice and home affairs, and defence.
- 'Ukraine the major reason'-
The defence opt-out means that the Scandinavian country, a founding member of NATO, does not participate in EU foreign policy where defence is concerned and does not contribute troops to EU military missions.
Denmark is the only country to have negotiated a defence opt-out, though Malta remains de facto outside as well. Copenhagen has exercised its opt-out 235 times in 29 years, according to a tally by the Europa think tank.
Danish PM Frederiksen called the referendum just two weeks after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and after having reached an agreement with a majority of parties in Denmark's parliament, the Folketing.
At the same time, she also announced plans to increase defence spending to two percent of GDP, in line with NATO membership requirements, by 2033.
"It was a big surprise", said the director of the Europa think tank, Lykke Friis.
"For the past many, many years, nobody thought that the government would put the defence opt-out to a national referendum", she said.
"There's no doubt that Ukraine was the major reason for calling the referendum."
Berlin's announcement that it was reversing decades of defence policy by massively hiking its military spending also played a key role in the Danish decision, Friis said.
Germany is Denmark's closest ally, along with the United States.
"The very fact that they stepped up their game put Denmark in a position where we could not hide behind Germany any more".
- 'NATO is enough' -
Eleven of Denmark's 14 parties have urged voters to say "yes" to dropping the opt-out, representing more than three-quarters of seats in parliament.
Two far-right eurosceptic parties -- the Danish People's Party and The New Right -- as well as the far-left Unity List, have meanwhile called for Danes to say "no".
One of their main arguments is that the emergence of a joint European defence would come at the expense of NATO, which has been the cornerstone of Denmark's defence since its creation in 1949.
"NATO is the guarantor of Denmark's security. It would be totally different if it were decided in Brussels," the head of the Danish People's Party Morten Messerschmitt argued during Sunday's debate.
After Finland and Sweden recently reversed decades of military non-alignment to apply for membership in NATO, and the Danish referendum, the three Nordic neighbours could all suddenly find themselves doubled up on European defence policy and NATO membership.
The results of the referendum are expected around 11:00 pm (2100 GMT) on Wednesday.
Denmark's autonomous territories of Greenland -- which is not in the EU -- and the Faroe Islands are not participating in the referendum.
In December 2015, Danes voted "no" to strengthening their cooperation with the European Union on police and security matters for fear of losing their sovereignty over immigration.
T.Resende--PC