Trump has not backed down from acquiring Greenland, Rubio suggested

US President Donald Trump stirred up geopolitical waters last week when he revived the idea of gaining control over mineral-rich Greenland, which officially belongs to the Kingdom of Denmark.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized on Wednesday that diplomacy was preferred, but did not rule out invasion.

"Nevertheless, as a diplomat—which I am now—and as we work, we always prefer solutions by other means, and that applies to Venezuela as well," he said in response to a question about whether the United States is willing to potentially jeopardize the US-led NATO military alliance by forcibly taking over Greenland.

US lawmakers are preparing legislation to limit the president's powers to seize the world's largest island. European countries and Canada have openly supported Greenland's sovereignty, and Denmark has requested urgent talks, which will take place next week.

Although the United States already has significant access to the island, Trump claims that Denmark is neglecting its protection and that Russian and Chinese ships are operating there, which the European country denies and is not confirmed by ship tracking data from MarineTraffic and LSEG.

Greenland has repeatedly rejected any form of annexation or purchase of the territory, which Trump's team is openly considering.

(reuters, pir)