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Date: 19th of January, 2026

 

Amid rising geopolitical tensions in the Arctic driven by accelerating ice melt, new opportunities have emerged in the form of access to critical minerals. These dynamics have been amplified by President Trump’s public statements regarding the potential seizure or ownership of Greenland, a sovereign, self-governing, and autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, widely interpreted as reflecting strategic interest in Greenland’s mineral resources.

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These developments are further characterized by the strategic use of narratives as instruments of power to advance strategic public and private interests in the global competition for critical minerals. China’s dominant position largely shapes this competition, as it controls approximately 85% of the world’s critical mineral supply and 95% of global processing capacity. In recent days, numerous false or misleading claims by various actors have highlighted the growing necessity of systematically assessing what we propose to term mineral disinformation.

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Mineral disinformation is closely linked to energy and climate disinformation, as it seeks to shape public perception and political discourse around minerals essential for the green transition. While Greenland represents a salient example that has received global attention, it likely marks only the beginning of a broader wave of mineral disinformation as competition over critical minerals intensifies. However, this phenomenon is not unprecedented. The strategic weaponization of narratives to gain mineral-related advantages has been documented in cases including Chile, Serbia, Ukraine, the United States, Myanmar, and Malaysia.

We therefore propose the adoption of mineral disinformation as a necessary analytical term for use by policymakers, researchers, and other stakeholders, to capture a specific phenomenon increasingly shaping the global competition for critical minerals. Mineral disinformation, thus, refers to the intentional spread of false, misleading, or strategically framed information about critical minerals, aimed at shaping public perception, political discourse, or market dynamics to advance strategic public and private interests. Closely linked to energy and climate disinformation, it reflects the increasing use of narratives as a strategic tool in this competition. Adopting this term will support clearer and more coherent discourse on the strategic weaponization of narratives and disinformation aimed at securing competitive advantages in the critical minerals domain.

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Climate Information Watch Team