Trump announces $175bn Golden Dome to shield US from missile attacks

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has announced a new defence project called the Golden Dome missile defence shield. 

It will cost $175 billion and aims to protect the US by using satellites to spot and stop missiles before they can hit. The system is designed to defend the US against possible attacks from countries like China and Russia.

Trump announced at a White House press conference that US Space Force General Michael Guetlein would be the lead programme manager for what the president said would be a $175 billion project—an effort widely viewed as the keystone to Trump’s military planning.

Golden Dome will “protect our homeland,” Trump said from the Oval Office and added that Canada had said it wanted to be part of it.

First ordered by Trump in January, Golden Dome aims to create a network of satellites to detect, track and potentially intercept incoming missiles. The shield could deploy hundreds of satellites for missile detection and tracking.

At a cost of $175 billion, it will take years to implement, as the controversial programme faces both political scrutiny and funding uncertainty.

Democratic lawmakers have voiced concern about the procurement process and the involvement of Trump ally Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which has emerged as a frontrunner alongside Palantir and Anduril to build key components of the system.

The Golden Dome idea was inspired by Israel’s land-based Iron Dome defence shield that protects it from missiles and rockets. Trump’s Golden Dome is much more extensive and includes a massive array of surveillance satellites and a separate fleet of attacking satellites that would shoot down offensive missiles soon after lift-off.

Tuesday’s announcement kicks off the Pentagon’s effort to test and ultimately buy the missiles, systems, sensors and satellites that will make up the Golden Dome.