Greenland’s mining and business minister, Naaja Nathanielsen, rejected US overtures to buy the territory. Residents should determine the island's future, she told DW, as well as that of its valuable resources. 

"We want collaboration. We don't want to be Americans," Nathanielsen said "And there's a great, great difference in that."

Nathanielsen said the government was debating how to collaborate with the United States but it was "too soon to say" what form any discussions could take. US officials are set to meet with their Danish counterparts next week to discuss President Donald Trump's interest in the island. Greenland will have a representative at the meeting.

Greenland’s strategic position as a gateway to the Arctic has made it increasingly attractive to the US as the region becomes more accessible. But President Donald Trump has also pointed to the vast mineral wealth under the territory, which includes iron ore and gold as well as rare earth metals. At 1.5 million tons, Greenland has the world's eighth-largest reserves of rare earth metals, or accessible deposits, according to the USGS, which counts a full 36 million tons of rare earth deposits in the territory.

Repeated warnings to Greenland

Reuters reported on Friday that the Trump administration is considering offering lump sum payments of between $10,000 and $100,000 per person to Greenlanders to convince them to join the US.

Trump and senior advisor Stephen Miller have also suggested the US could take the island by military force. US Vice President JD Vance warned Europe to take Trump's warnings seriously.

Greenland is an autonomous territory belonging to Denmark, which pays an annual subsidy to the island.

Nathanielsen said the territory would like to end its reliance on the grant as it pursues sovereignty but that mining revenues would take time to accumulate.

"We have a lot of activity, but mining is very slow business," she said. "But we see a lot of positive development this year, and we do have expectations that many of the projects will move forward within the next couple of years."

There are currently two active mines in Greenland, producing gold and the mineral anorthosite, which is used to make windows, paints and coatings. A Danish-French venture, Greenland Anorthosite, received permission last year to begin mining, while an American-backed firm, Critical Metals, is building a pilot to extract rare earth metals.

Nathanielsen said there are no projects with Chinese or Russian backing. She said an explicit ban on certain countries’ backing is being discussed in foreign direct investment legislation before the parliament but that she found the debate "difficult."

"I could say, ‘Yes, we want to prohibit,’" Nathanielsen said. "But would that make sure we were not invaded or bought? I don’t know if that’s the case."

She said Greenland understood it falls within the US sphere of interest and that it preferred to develop its resources with "like-minded" countries, including the US, UK, European Union, Australia and Canada, but on its own volition.

"There needs to be respect that it’s the Greenland people who decide what happens in Greenland," she said. 

Edited by: Jess Smee