Jeppe Sebastian Kofod (born 14 March 1974) is a Danish former politician of the Social Democratic Party who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark between 27 June 2019 to 15 December 2022.
Kofod previously served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2014 to 2019. Within the Party of European Socialists group, he led the Social Democrats from Denmark. Kofod was a member of the Folketing (the Danish Parliament) from the Social Democrats from 1998 until 2014 and again briefly as a substitute member for two months in 2023.
Education From 2006 to 2007 Kofod completed a Master in Public Administration at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Political career
Member of the Danish Parliament, 1998–2014 Jeppe Kofod was a member of the Danish Parliament, the Folketing, first elected after the 1998 Danish general election for the constituency of Bornholm.. Retrieved on 2017-02-06. During his time in the Danish Parliament he was chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.
At Easter in 2008, the then 34-year-old Jeppe Kofod appeared in the media because it emerged that in the evening after giving a lecture for the Social Democratic Youth of Denmark (DSU), he had sex with a 15-year-old girl from DSU.S-ledelse tager afstand fra Jeppe Kofod. Berlingske.dk. Denmark's age of consent is 15. Kofod commented at the time that he had shown a 'lack of judgment' in having a 'morally inappropriate relationship'. The episode led, among other things, to Kofod resigning from his committee posts and his post as foreign affairs spokesman for the Social Democrats.Jeppe Kofod trækker sig efter sex med 15-årig - Politik | www.bt.dkSex med 15-årig fælder Jeppe Kofod - TV 2 Nyhederne The chairman of DSU, Jacob Bjerregaard, stated that Kofod had violated DSU's rules and that he was no longer welcome in DSU.Kofod ikke velkommen i DSU | Politik | DRDSU-Formand: Kofod skal ikke vise sig igen - Politiken.dk
Member of the European Parliament, 2014–2019 Kofod was the head of the Danish Socialists and Democrats' delegation and vice-president of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament. Serving his first term, he was elected to the European Parliament at the 2014 European Parliament election, with a total of 170.739 personal votes. He was re-elected in 2019.
During his time in the European Parliament, Kofod served on the following Committees and Delegations:
Vice-chair, European Parliament Delegation for Relations with the United StatesFlorian Eder (15 January 2019), US Congress members slam State Department for EU downgrade Politico Europe. Rapporteur, European Parliament Special Committee on Tax Rulings and Other Measures Similar in Nature or Effect (TAXE 2)John O'Donnell and Tom Sims (19 October 2018), European politicians call for clampdown on tax trade trick Reuters. Member, European Parliament Committee on Industry, Research and Energy Substitute, European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs Substitute, European Parliament Delegation for relations with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly
In addition to his committee assignments, Kofod was a member of the following intergroups in the European Parliament: European Forum for Renewable Energy Sources (EUFORES) Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals Intergroup on LGBTI Rights
Kofod was also a supporter of the MEP Heart Group, a group of parliamentarians who have an interest in promoting measures that help reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases (CVD).Supporters MEP Heart Group. He sat on the executive committee of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa (AWEPA).
Following the 2019 elections, Kofod was part of a cross-party working group in charge of drafting the European Parliament's four-year work program on foreign policy.Florian Eder (13 June 2019), POLITICO Brussels Playbook, presented by Google: Madrid’s moment — Parliament working groups sneak peak — Happy birthday, GDPR Politico Europe.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2019–2022
On 27 June 2019, Kofod was named minister for foreign affairs in the Frederiksen Cabinet.
Early during his tenure, Kofod and Frederiksen faced a diplomatic incident when U.S. president Donald Trump confirmed his interest in buying Greenland from Denmark;Lauren Fedor (19 August 2019), Trump says it would be ‘strategically nice’ to buy Greenland Financial Times. at the time, Kofod said the island could not be bought "in dollars, yuan or roubles".Lauren Fedor (19 August 2019), Trump says it would be ‘strategically nice’ to buy Greenland Financial Times. He later approved the establishment of a U.S. consulate in Greenland's capital Nuuk, which was widely seen as part of a broader move by the U.S. to expand its diplomatic and commercial presence in Greenland and the Arctic.Nikolaj Skydsgaard and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen (18 December 2019), Denmark approves new U.S. consulate in Greenland Reuters. In 2020, he welcomed a $12.1 million economic aid package from the U.S. government for Greenland.Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen and Humeyra Pamuk (23 April 2020), US extends economic aid to Greenland to counter China, Russia in Arctic Reuters.
Following the Bucha massacre in April 2022, Kofod expelled 15 Russian diplomats and embassy staff from Copenhagen, joining other European Union countries in its response to alleged war crimes by Russian troops in Ukraine.Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen and Stine Jacobsen (5 April 2022), Denmark expels 15 Russian diplomats; Moscow to retaliate Reuters.
In June 2022, Kofod summoned the Russian ambassador when a Russian warship twice violated Danish territorial waters north of the Baltic Sea island of Bornholm where a democracy festival attended by senior officials and business people – including Prime Minister Frederiksen – was taking place.Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen, Stine Jacobsen and Nikolaj Skydsgaard (18 June 2022), Russian warship violated Danish territorial waters in Baltic, Danish military says Reuters.
At the 2022 Danish general election in November 2022 Kofod was not elected to the Folketing, and when a new government was formed in December, he was replaced by former prime minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen.Daniel Bue Lauritzen (2 November 2022), Jeppe Kofod bliver ikke valgt til Folketinget Altinget.Emil Eller (15 December 2022), Ellemann bliver forsvarsminister og Løkke bliver udenrigsminister Danmarks Radio.
Kofod was a substitute member of Folketinget for a couple of months from 28 February 2023, replacing Mette Gjerskov, who was on leave of absence because of disease. Kofod withdrew from the position on 1 May, retiring from politics altogether. When Gjerskov died on 12 June 2023, Kofod confirmed again that he did not want to take her seat and become an MF again.
References
External links Personal profile of Jeppe Kofod in the European Parliament's database of members Official profile page on the website of the Socialists and Democrats Official website of Jeppe Kofod (in Danish)