Trump wants a system that can defend against a wide array of enemy weapons -- from intercontinental ballistic missiles to hypersonic and cruise missiles to drones -- and he wants it ready in about three years, or as he nears the end of his second term in office.
Four months after Trump initially ordered the Pentagon to develop options for the system, however, little in the way of further details has emerged.
"The main challenges will be cost, the defense industrial base, and political will. They can all be overcome, but it will take focus and prioritization," said Melanie Marlowe, a nonresident senior associate in the Missile Defense Project at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies.
"The White House and Congress are going to have to agree on how much to spend and where the money will come from," Marlowe said, noting that "our defense industrial base has atrophied," though "we have begun to revive it."
She also cited the need for more progress on sensors, interceptors and other components of the project.
Trump on Tuesday announced an initial $25 billion in funding for Golden Dome, saying its eventual cost would be about $175 billion.
That figure is likely far lower than the actual price of such a system.
Thomas Roberts, assistant professor of international affairs and aerospace engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, said the price estimate was "not realistic."
"The challenge with the statements from yesterday is that they lack the details needed to develop a model of what this constellation would really look like," he said.
- 'Not holding my breath' -
Earlier this month, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated the cost of space-based interceptors to defeat a limited number of intercontinental ballistic missiles at between $161 billion and $542 billion over 20 years.
A system such as that envisaged by Trump "could require a more expansive SBI (space-based interceptor) capability than the systems examined in the previous studies. Quantifying those recent changes will require further analysis," the CBO said.
The Golden Dome concept -- and name -- stem from Israel's Iron Dome air defense system. But the United States' missile threats differ significantly from the short-range weapons that Iron Dome is designed to counter.
Beijing is closing the gap with Washington when it comes to ballistic and hypersonic missile technology, while Moscow is modernizing its intercontinental-range missile systems and developing advanced precision strike missiles, according to the Pentagon's 2022 Missile Defense Review.
The document also said the threat of drones -- which have played a key role in the Ukraine war -- is likely to grow, and warned of the danger of ballistic missiles from North Korea and Iran, as well as rocket and missile threats from non-state actors.
Chad Ohlandt, a senior engineer at the RAND Corporation, said "the threat is clearly getting worse," but the "key question is how to most cost effectively counter" it.
"Any questions of realism or feasibility" for Golden Dome "depend on where we set the bar. Defend against how many threats? Threats of what capability? What is to be defended? As you raise the bar, it becomes more expensive," Ohlandt said.
Thomas Withington, associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said "there are a number of bureaucratic, political, science and technological milestones that will need to be achieved if Golden Dome is ever going to enter service in any meaningful capacity."
"It is an incredibly expensive undertaking, even for the US defense budget. This is serious, serious money," Withington said.
"I'm not holding my breath as to whether we will actually ever see this capability."
Canada discussing joining US 'Golden Dome' missile defense plan: Carney
Ottawa (AFP) May 21, 2025 - Canada has been holding "high level" talks with its southern neighbor about joining US President Donald Trump's proposed "Golden Dome" missile defense system, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday.
"We are conscious that we have an ability, if we so choose, to complete the Golden Dome with investments in partnership (with the US). And it's something that we are looking at and something that has been discussed at a high level," he told a news conference.
Trump wants a system that can defend against a wide array of enemy weapons -- from intercontinental ballistic missiles to hypersonic and cruise missiles and drones -- asking for it to be ready in about three years, near the end of his second term in office.
But it faces significant technical and political challenges.
Carney warned of new and increasing missile threats "that in the not too distant future could come from space."
"We take those threats seriously," he said.
Canada and the United States are partners in continental defense through the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
At the same time, Ottawa is looking to diversify its trade and security partnerships after once strong Canada-US ties have frayed.
It recently announced a review of a major purchase of US-made F-35 combat planes and signed a deal with Australia to develop Arctic radar systems.
Carney said his government is also in talks with European allies on "becoming a full partner of ReArm Europe," an initiative to bolster European defense capabilities and industry.
In tone shift, Kremlin calls Trump's Golden Dome plan 'sovereign matter'
Moscow (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.
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