Widespread condemnation.
That’s the reaction independent member of the Folketing Jacob Harris received from his colleagues on Thursday when he announced a planned meeting with the Russian ambassador.
The meeting between Harris and Ambassador Vladimir Barbin will take place on 10 November.
Who is Jacob Harris?
Harris was elected to the Folketing for the first time in the March election this year for the Citizens’ Party (Borgernes Parti).
However, after only four days (believed to be a record), he was excluded over a series of allegations, made against him and his wife, of misappropriation of funds in a bankruptcy case.
Harris has denied wrongdoing, and the couple’s lawyer told Roskilde District Court on Tuesday that everything was done by the book. The court is due to rule on the civil bankruptcy-quarantine case by 3 November.
They are now awaiting the court’s decision.
Harris has, since becoming independent, formed a political alliance with fellow independent member of the Folketing, Cecilie Liv Hansen, who was excluded from Liberal Alliance.
He has been accused of being conspiratorial and pro-Russian by political opponents.
This includes a post on Wednesday across social media platforms where he asked, “Is it completely coincidental that several of the countries that were strong advocates for COVID-19 vaccination are now also experiencing IT outages?”
The planned meeting
On Thursday, Harris announced on Facebook that he would be meeting with the Russian ambassador next month.
In the post where he announced the meeting, he wrote, “I am fully aware that in today’s Folketing, doing something like that can almost be life-threatening for one’s political career.
“Because there is apparently only one correct way to see the world. One correct way to think. And only one correct side you are allowed to speak with.”
He went on to explain that “We must do everything we can to keep Denmark out of war and to prevent international conflicts from escalating on Danish territory.”
In the post, he also implied that he was working with Liv Hansen on this project and that they had also reached out to the Ukrainian Embassy but had not heard anything back.
As he put it, “My goal is not to choose sides between Russia and Ukraine. My goal is to work for peace and for Denmark’s security.”
Government: “Useful idiot”
The post was not well received by the Danish government.
Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen of the Moderates (Moderaterne) spoke out a few hours after the announcement and told DR, “I can’t exactly ban it, of course.
“But one has to be clear that if you take a meeting with the Russian ambassador, there is a huge risk that you make yourself a useful idiot.”
Minister of Defence Jeppe Bruus of the Social Democrats (Socialdemokratiet) added, “It almost speaks for itself how stupid it is.”
Opposition: “It actually makes me furious”
The post was likewise not well received by the parties in opposition.
In a post on Facebook, Troels Lund Poulsen, leader of Venstre, wrote, “I actually thought it was a bad joke when I read it”, before going on to write, “That is the completely wrong path to take, and it actually makes me furious.”
Leader of the Denmark Democrats (Danmarksdemokraterne) Inger Støjberg wrote on X, “It is a thoroughly terrible idea to let oneself be used as a useful idiot by the Russians, as Jacob Harris now intends to do with his meeting with the Russian ambassador in Denmark.”
One defender in the Folketing
So far, the only member of the Folketing to back up Harris is Liv Hansen, who told DR, “I think it’s reasonable to meet with ambassadors regardless of where they come from. Jacob Harris has also tried to reach out to several others, including the Ukrainian ambassador.”
Following the cross-spectrum reactions, Harris posted on Facebook again and wrote, “And then Christiansborg melted down. Imagine someone daring to talk about diplomacy and peace!
“No citizens want war, it’s only the system and those in power who paint themselves into that corner. I’m simply saying: let’s meet and exchange views instead of constantly fuelling the conflict.”
