Copenhagen, 24 December 2024 (dpa/MIA) - The Danish Defence Ministry announced on Tuesday a massive new defence expenditure centred on Greenland, the Arctic territory rich in minerals and natural resources that Copenhagen lays claim to and which US President-elect Donald Trump covets.

Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the defence package would amount to a "double-digit billion amount." Ten billion Danish kroner is the equivalent of nearly $1.5 billion.

Two Thetis-class patrol boats, two long-range drones and two sled dog teams are to be purchased with the money, which will also support more personnel for Denmark's Arctic Command, Poulsen told the newspaper Jyllands-Posten.

"We have not invested enough in the Arctic for many years, now we are planning a stronger presence," he said.

He called the timing of the announcement an "irony of fate," coming just hours after Trump's latest comments on purchasing Greenland.

The defence minister emphasized that Denmark cannot monitor the huge territory of Greenland alone. "There are no concrete plans, but we will work with the US," said Poulsen.

Trump had proposed buying Greenland during his first term in office. The far-fetched offer led to a diplomatic dust-up between Washington and Copenhagen, which called the plan "absurd."

But, years later, Greenland remains on Trump's mind. On Monday, he wrote on his Truth Social platform: "For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity."

"We are not for sale and will never be for sale," Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede responded in a statement. "Greenland is ours. We must not lose our years-long fight for freedom."

The Danish government said only that is supported Egede's position.

The US, Russia and China are increasingly competing for influence and control of the strategically located and resource-rich melting polar regions.

MIA file photo