SpaceWar.com - Your World At War
In tone shift, Kremlin calls Trump's Golden Dome plan 'sovereign matter'
Moscow, May 21 (AFP) May 21, 2025
The Kremlin said Wednesday that Donald Trump's plan for a "Golden Dome" missile shield required consultations with Russia but was otherwise a "sovereign matter" for the United States, softening its tone after previously slamming the idea as destabilising.

The proposal, which Trump ordered a week after his inauguration in January, would see Washington deploy missile interceptors in space to protect against ballistic and hypersonic threats.

Unveiling new details on initial funding for the project on Tuesday, Trump called it "important for the success and even survival of our country".

"This is a sovereign matter for the United States. If the United States believes that there is a missile threat, then of course it will develop a missile defence system," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters including AFP on Wednesday.

"That is what all countries do," he added.

"Of course, in the foreseeable future, the course of events will require the resumption of contacts to restore strategic stability," he added, referring to broader nuclear talks.

Peskov's comments came two days after a call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin that the US leader said "went very well".

Since taking office, Trump has sought to warm ties with the Kremlin, reaching out to Putin directly in a bid to broker an end to the three-year Ukraine conflict.

Russia previously denounced the Golden Dome plan, warning it risked turning space into a "battlefield".

In a joint statement with China earlier this month, both countries denounced the idea as "deeply destabilising".

The plan's Golden Dome name stems from Israel's Iron Dome air defence system which has intercepted thousands of short-range rockets and other projectiles since it went into operation in 2011.

Washington faces various missile threats from adversaries, but they differ significantly from the short-range weapons that Israel's Iron Dome is designed to counter.

Beijing, which has deepened cooperation with Moscow in recent years, on Wednesday described Trump's plans as a threat to international security.

Russia and the United States have the world's two largest arsenals of nuclear warheads.


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Trump-Musk showdown threatens US space plans
Japanese company aborts Moon mission after assumed crash-landing
Renowned Mars expert says Trump-Musk axis risks dooming mission

24/7 Energy News Coverage
'No doubt' Canadian firm will be first to extract deep sea minerals: CEO
Tabletop particle blaster: How tiny nozzles and lasers could replace giant accelerators
Set it and forget it: Autonomous structures can be programmed to jump days in advance

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
Iran FM warns Europe against 'strategic mistake' at IAEA; Iran obtained 'sensitive' Israeli intel
DOD is investigating Hegseth's staffers over Houthi-strikes chats
Three dead as Ukraine hit with third-straight day of overnight attacks

24/7 News Coverage
Ailing Baltic Sea in need of urgent attention
Money, mining and marine parks: The big issues at UN ocean summit
Solar power farms would impact less than 1 percent of Arkansas' ag land



All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.