Danes, who have historically been skeptical of the European Union's efforts to deepen cooperation, will vote on Wednesday whether to reverse the country's 30-year-old decision to abandon the EU's common defense policy, Reuters writes.

Denmark's accession to EU defense policy will have a relatively modest impact on Europe's security architecture, especially compared to Sweden and Finland joining NATO. But Christine Nissen, a researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies, said the two moves are "part of the same story" and will strengthen military cooperation in a continent stunned by the war in Ukraine.

She said the main effect of not taking the decision to withdraw would be that Danish officials could stay in the room when EU counterparts discussed defense issues and that Danish forces could take part in the bloc's military operations.

Denmark, a founding member of NATO, has remained on the sidelines of the EU's efforts to build a common security and defense policy in parallel with the transatlantic alliance. It was one of four refusals that the Danes insisted on before accepting the EU's Maastricht Treaty, which laid the foundation for political and economic union.

The 1992 refusal meant that Denmark did not participate in EU discussions on defense policy, its development and the acquisition of military capabilities and its joint military operations.

The Danes also refused to cooperate with the EU in the field of justice and home affairs, the common currency and citizenship.

Social Democrat Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has called for a referendum on March 8, less than two weeks after the outbreak of war in Ukraine.