Law and Security Conference

Conference organised by Centre for Law and Security (CERES).

Photo: Brian Djurslev, Danish Defence

In these turbulent times, Danish, Nordic, and European authorities often operate in a grey zone between war and peace and must be able to handle a range of different security‑policy scenarios. This places significant demands on emergency preparedness — and on the legal framework:

How do we in Denmark, the Nordic region, and Europe address the many diverse and current threats without compromising fundamental principles of the rule of law, including human rights and international legal obligations?

Under the theme “Law & Security”, the conference will bring together researchers, politicians, civil servants, representatives from the business community and civil society from Denmark, the Nordic countries, and Europe, to focus on, among other things, the following topics:

  • International institutions under pressure
  • Transatlantic defense cooperation
  • European security infrastructure
  • Security in the Arctic

The conference spans 1½ days and will be conducted primarily in English (with the possibility of asking questions in Danish). Everyone is welcome to attend the entire conference, but it is also possible to register for Day 1 and Day 2 separately.

Registration

Sign up for the conference on Law and Security.

Confirmed speakers

  • Marko Milanovic, Professor, University of Reading
  • Mette Lyster Knudsen, High Court Judge, President of the Danish Association of Judges, and the Nordic states’ candidate for judge of the ICC 2027-2036
  • Frank Hoffmeister, Director, Head of the Legal Department, European External Action Service (EEAS)
  • Janina Dill, Professor at Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford
  • Russell Buchan, Professor, University of Reading
  • Yoshifumi Tanaka, Professor, University of Copenhagen
  • Ole Spiermann, Chaiman of the Board and Partner, Bruun & Hjejle
  • Elisabeth Bjerregaard, PhD student, Aarhus University
  • Stuart Casey-Maslen, Senior Researcher and the head of scientific projects, Geneva Academy
  • Jes Rynkeby Knudsen, Chief Legal Advisor, Defence Command Denmark 
  • Marc Jacobsen, Associate Professor, Royal Danish Defence College
  • Graham Butler, Professor, University of Southern Denmark
  • Jan Asmus Bischoff, NATO Joint Warfare Centre, Stavanger
  • Agata Kleczkowska, Assistant Professor, Institute of Law Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences
  • Asbjørn Thranov, Political Consultant, Danish Shipping
  • Pedro Rodríguez-Ponga, PhD researcher, Pedro Arrupe Human Rights Institute, Universidad de Deusto 
  • Vincent Widdig, Lecturer, Hannover University
  • Inna Zavorotko, Head of Division, Legal Department of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine
  • Oleksii Plotnikov, Officer at the Legal Department of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine
  • Anne-Charlotte Baron, PhD researcher, Royal Military Academy of Belgium

Programme

Thursday 27 August

12:30 - 13:00 Registration and welcome
13:00 - 13:45
Keynote followed by Q&A:

  • Marko Milanovic: Assessing international law’s evolving response to new technologies: cyber, AI, academic manuals and the value of doctrinal scholarship
13:45 - 14:00 Coffee break
14:00 - 15:15
Panel I: European security infrastructure:

Format: Three presentations (10-15 minutes each) followed by Q&A/discussion

Moderator: Cornelius Wiesener

  • Graham Butler: Security, Vulnerability, and the Internal Development of EU Law
  • Agata Kleczkowska: Reassessing Article 42(7) TEU: Legal Responses to Contemporary European Security Challenges
  • Jan Asmus Bischoff: A solid promise? Article 5 NATO Treaty and its loopholes
15:15 - 15:45 Coffee and cake
15:45 - 17:00
Panel II: Cyber Security:

Format: Three presentations (10-15 minutes each) followed by Q&A/discussion.

Moderator: Anja Møller Pedersen

  • Russell Buchan: State Jurisdiction in the Digital Age
  • Asbjørn Thranov: Denmark's national position paper on international law in cyberspace: A glimpse into the development process
  • Elisabeth Bjerregaard: A Danish Perspective on Influence Operations
17:00 - 17:15 Break
17:15 - 18:00
Keynote followed by Q&A:
  • Frank Hoffmeister: Towards a European Defense Union

Friday 28 August

8:30 - 9:00 Registration, coffee and croissant
9:00 - 9:45
Keynote followed by Q&A:
  • Janina Dill: International Law on the use of force: A report card
9:45 - 10:00 Coffee break
10:00 - 11:15
Panel III: Hybrid threats:

Format: Three presentations (10-15 minutes each) followed by Q&A/discussion.

Moderator: Marc Schack

  • Yoshifumi Tanaka: International Law Facing Dark Fleets: Any Possible Actions by Coastal States?
  • Pedro Rodríguez-Ponga: Weaponisation of Migrants as a Hybrid Security Threat: Legal Responses at the EU’s External Borders
  • Vincent Widdig: Evidence, Attribution and the Rule of Law in Europe’s Grey Zone: International Legal Standards for Hybrid Security Threats
11:15 - 11:45 Coffee break
11:45 - 13:00
Panel IV: IHL under pressure – new technologies/arms control:

Format: Three presentations (10-15 minutes each) followed by Q&A/discussion.

Moderator: Iben Yde

  • Jes Rynkeby Knudsen: Danish experience with IHL and new technology
  • Inna Zavorotko & Oleksii Plotnikov: Ensuring Legality of New Technologies in Armed Conflict: from Theory to Practice
  • Stuart Casey-Maslen: The Legal Regulation of New Technologies: Gaps, Challenges, and Opportunities
13:00 - 13:45 Lunch
13:45 - 14:30
Keynote followed by Q&A:
  • Mette Lyster Knudsen: ICC and current challenges - a Nordic judge’s perspective
14:30 - 14:45 Coffee break
14:45 - 16:00
Panel V: International Institutions Under Pressure

Format: Three presentations (10-15 minutes each) followed by Q&A/discussion.

Moderator: Marcus Rubin

  • Astrid Kjeldgaard-Pedersen: The ICJ and the ILC: Clarification and Progressive Development of International Law in Turbulent Times
  • Anne-Charlotte Baron: The ICC as a Lawfare Battlefield: Between Politicisation and Conflict Resolution
  • Jens Elo Rytter: The Strasbourg Court: Between Critical Dialogue and Remote Control
16:00 - 16:15 Coffee and cake
16:15 - 17:30
Panel VI: Greenland and Arctic Security

Format: Three presentations (10-15 minutes each) followed by Q&A/discussion.

Moderator: Sune Klinge

  • Ole Spiermann: Out of imperialism – the case of Greenland
  • Marc Jacobsen: The United States' interests in Greenland and their influence on Realm relations
  • TBC
17:30 - 17:45 Closing remarks
17:45 Friday bar with draft CERES beer, snacks and live music (Law Faculty’s terrace outside venue)

 

 

 

We invite paper proposals addressing legal challenges – including international law, EU law, constitutional law, and human rights law – in relation to current security threats facing Denmark, the Nordics and Europe. We welcome contributions on a broad array of topical issues, including for example:

  • Emergency law regimes
  • The role of the police and armed forces in responding to terrorist attacks and similar incidents
  • The work, tasks, and oversight of intelligence services
  • Issues of confidentiality, national security, and prosecution
  • Special national security procedures and regulations related to, inter alia, foreigners and criminal procedural interventions
  • Defence agreements, status of forces agreements, host nation support-frameworks, and similar types of regulation covering the presence of foreign military forces in Denmark, the Nordics, and Europe.  

We will aim to include both senior scholars and PhD students in the conference panels. Speakers are expected to cover their own travel expenses. The organizers will provide accommodation.

Submit your paper proposal by 1 May 2026.

Please submit an abstract of no more that 400 words and a short bio to CERES-student@jur.ku.dk

Social events: All registered participants are invited to a reception on 27 August at well as to the “CERES Friday Bar” on 28 August 2026. In addition, all speakers and chairs will be invited to join an informal conference dinner on 27 August 2026.

Conference publication: Depending on the submissions, we aim to publish conference papers in an edited volume or in a special issue of e.g. the Nordic Journal of International Law (subject to peer-review).

 

Course certificate

For Danish legal practitioners: A course certificate may be issued upon participation in the conference (In Danish: kursuspoint til obligatorisk efteruddannelse). Please contact us upon registration.