Claus Hjort Frederiksen (born 4 September 1947) is a Danish politician of the Venstre party, who served as the Danish Minister for Defence from 2016 to 2019, and as Minister for Finance from 2015 to 2016, having previously served in that position from 2009 to 2011, as member of the first Løkke Rasmussen Cabinet.

[5] Frederiksen served as party secretary of Venstre 1985–2001, and as such he served as Fogh Rasmussen's closest advisor in creating the political program that eventually led to Fogh Rasmussen's ascent to the office of Prime Minister.

The political program involved a closer relationship and dependency on the Danish People's Party and Frederiksen has notedly remarked that there exists a special community of values between said party and Venstre.

Among the revelations were: In January 2022, Claus Frederiksen announced he had been charged with violating a section of the Danish penal code which includes treason for leaking state secrets, which carries a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison.

[12] On 27 October 2023 the Supreme Court ruled against the prosecution's demand that the charges against Frederiksen were to not be made public.