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Danish Agriculture Minister Mogens Jensen | Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Denmark's Agriculture Minister Mogens Jensen said on Wednesday he will step down after facing intense pressure for mishandling the country's planned cull of its mink.

Pressure began to pile up on Jensen after it emerged that his minority Social Democrats government had announced the plan for the mass culling of up to 17 million minks on November 4 without the necessary legislation in place.

Denmark decided to cull the animals, which are farmed for their fur, because of fears a mutated version of the coronavirus, passing from minks to humans, could jeopardize the efficacy of a future vaccine.

The government on Tuesday reached a deal with other parties on creating a retroactive legal basis for the cull but critics had been arguing Jensen had acted unconstitutionally.

In a statement, Jensen said he was resigning because he no longer enjoys the support of a majority of parties in the Danish parliament.

"I would like to say that it is clear here that my ministry has made a mistake in connection with the government announcing the decision to kill all mink in Denmark. I've apologized for that before. I apologize again and take responsibility for that," he wrote.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article misstated on which day Mogens Jensen announced his resignation.

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