Denmark prime minister Mette Frederiksen suffers whiplash after being assaulted in Copenhagen

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has suffered whiplash after being shoved by a man while walking in central Copenhagen.

The 46-year-old was left shocked by the assault, which took place in a square in the city's old town on Friday, just two days before the Danish EU Parliament elections.

The alleged attacker, a 39-year-old man, was arrested and is set to appear in court on Saturday afternoon. No motive for the attack has been disclosed.

A witness told a local newspaper: "A man came by in the opposite direction and gave her a hard shove on the shoulder, causing her to fall to the side."

Another witness, Kasper Jorgensen, told the Ekstra Bladet tabloid that a well-dressed man, who seemed part of Ms Frederiksen's protection unit, and a police officer took down the alleged assailant.

Ms Frederiksen was not said to be seriously injured and did not fall over after the strong push, instead staggering to a nearby cafe to recover.

Soren Kjaergaard, who was working at a local bar on Kultorvet Square where the incident happened, told the BT that he saw Ms Frederiksen after the incident and she had no visible injuries to her face but walked away quickly.

The prime minister, who is part of the Social Democrat party, had been out on Friday campaigning with the candidate Christel Schaldemose and was assaulted later.

Politicians from all sides condemned the attack.

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said: “[This is a] despicable act, which goes against everything we believe in and fight for in Europe.”

Danish Environment Minister Magnus Heunicke tweeted: "Mette is naturally shocked by the attack. I must say that it shakes all of us who are close to her."

The incident comes after Slovakian president Robert Fico was shot but survived after emergency surgery.