Residents of Greenland’s capital are weighing extreme measures as U.S. interest in the self-governing island grows, AFP reported Saturday.

Ulrikke Andersen, 40, has mapped out escape routes with her daughter if the United States invades. “Before, I was ready to die for my country but when I had a kid that changed everything,” she said.

Andersen, a tour operator, said she would fly to Denmark if a U.S. takeover is gradual, or escape by boat to a fjord cabin if sudden. “We can hunt, we can fish, we can live off nature. We are used to living under extreme conditions,” she said.

Some residents are stocking water, petrol, and generators, while others, like student Nuunu Binzer, 35, are considering basic survival plans. “I'm thinking about where to hide and what medicines we need to stock,” he said. “But I haven't done it yet.”

Supermarkets in Nuuk remain well stocked, and authorities have issued no guidance on how to respond to a potential invasion.

Not all are preparing to flee. Inger Olsvig Brandt, 62, said she would stay and help. “It can be tempting to think that we can just leave but we are so few that we need each other,” she said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed interest in Greenland, valued for rare earth minerals and strategic Arctic positioning, prompting debate among the island’s roughly 20,000 residents.