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The Guardian
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Golden Dome missile defense program won't be done by end of Trump's term
Donald Trump's so-called Golden Dome missile defense program – which will feature space-based weapons to intercept strikes against the US – is not expected to be ready before the end of his term, despite his prediction that it would be completed within the next three years. In the Oval Office last week, when he announced that the US space force would oversee the project under Gen Michael Guetlein, the president said he was confident that it would be 'fully operational' before he left office. But the implementation plan for the Golden Dome produced by the Pentagon, as described by two people familiar with the matter, envisions having the defense weapons being ready for a possible only for a demonstration and under perfect conditions by the end of 2028. The Golden Dome program is effectively becoming operational in phases as opposed to it coming online all at once. Initially, the Pentagon is set to focus on integrating data systems before developing space-based weapons later, the people said. What might be possible in 18 months is for the US to have the foundations of a fully operational Golden Dome, where a military network of satellites and space-based communication systems could track hundreds of inbound missiles towards the US. There would be no capability to take out the missiles using space-based weapons at that stage. The US has roughly 40 Patriot defense batteries in Alaska and California that could be used to kill potential intercontinental ballistic missiles. By the end of Trump's term, instead, the Pentagon could have the network of space-based sensors and communications, and attempt to integrate it with untested space-based weapons to shoot them down. The space-based network is likely to rely heavily on Elon Musk's SpaceX, which has been developing a next-generation tracking system known as the 'aerial moving target identifier'. The defense department acquired the first prototypes last year during the Biden administration. But the flagship concept for Golden Dome, to identify and kill ballistic missiles in the first 30 seconds to two minutes of launch when their heat signature is greatest – known as 'boost phase' – is not expected to be ready. That technology remains in development and it may not be feasible for years for a counter-missile launched from space to cut through Earth's atmosphere with enough force to eliminate a ballistic missile, the people said. The defense department already struggles with ground-based interceptors, which have been in development since the 1980s to take out missiles in their so-called 'glide phase', but still have only a roughly 20% success rate. A White House spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that the defense department 'will not publicly disclose specific technical details regarding the capabilities or acquisition strategies of certain advanced systems'. The Trump administration has said Golden Dome could cost in the region of $175bn, a figure derived from what the Pentagon allocated for the project, according to two people familiar with the matter: $17.6bn for 2026, roughly $50bn for 2027, and roughly $100bn for 2028. The final cost could be higher but Pentagon officials have said privately it depends on how ambitious Trump orders Golden Dome to be. If Trump wants the ability to protect against 100 ballistic missiles, for instance, it could necessitate Golden Dome having several thousands of satellites that will naturally de-orbit every few years and need to be replaced, one of the people said. Trump said in a Truth Social post on Tuesday that Canada could participate in Golden Dome, but that it would have to pay $61bn or become the 51st US state to get it for free. It was not clear how Trump reached that figure. The idea of having Canada be a part of the program was discussed at the Pentagon when Trump first ordered Golden Dome months ago, one of the people said, but it was more about Canada contributing its satellite and radar data into Golden Dome. Initially, the White House's national security council called the program 'Moonshot', the people said. The defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, thought it was a terrible name and came up with three tiers for a possible missile shield system: silver, gold and platinum. The only tier costed out was gold.
National Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- National Post
What is the Golden Dome and does Canada want to be part of it like Trump says?
Inside the Oval Office on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump told the world he'd decided on a design for the Golden Dome, a multilayered missile defence program to counter threats to America, even those coming from foreign-controlled satellites. Article content The president also said that Canada wants in on a system the White House estimates will cost US$175 billion. Article content Here's what you need to know. Article content Article content What is the Golden Dome? Article content Article content The system is needed, Trump said, in order to protect the country from 'hypersonic missiles, ballistic missiles and advanced cruise missiles.' He said it would also use 'space-based sensors and interceptors,' marking the first time the U.S. will have weapons in orbit around the planet. Article content It will be overseen by Gen. Michael Guetlein, currently the vice chief of space operations, or Space Force, which Trump launched in 2019 as a stand-alone, sixth branch of the U.S. military. Article content He anticipates the 'next generation technologies across the land, sea and space' to be integrated with the existing defence systems and be up and running by 2029. His second term is set to end that January. Article content 'In about three years, once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world and even if they're launched from space,' Trump said. Article content Article content According to a U.S. official who spoke with the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity, Trump chose from three options developed by military planners in recent months, each with a different price tag depending on the amount of equipment required. It's not clear which option Trump chose. Article content Article content Initial funding for the project is embedded in a massive bill currently making its way through Congress — the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act,' which, if passed, would kick-start Golden Dome work with $25 billion. Article content Article content A Congressional Budget Office report released in May exploring the cost of maintaining just space-based interceptors for 20 years estimated it at between $161 billion for the 'lowest-cost alternative' and $542 billion for the top tier.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump details plan to build ‘Golden Dome' missile shield by end of term
President Donald Trump has laid out new details of his ambitious plan for a multibillion-dollar 'Golden Dome' missile defense system to protect the United States from foreign attacks, saying it should be complete before he leaves office. 'We'll have it done in three years,' Trump told reporters as he detailed the plan in the Oval Office on Tuesday. 'Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world.' High-profile defense contractors and tech companies - including Elon Musk's SpaceX - are already jockeying for the job to build the shield, making pitches directly to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. But experts have also voiced skepticism about the timeframe and cost put forth by the White House – or even the feasibility of such a project. The US administration has remained vague on its plans for developing the missile shield, which takes inspiration from Israel's Iron Dome. While it is not yet clear what exactly the so-called Golden Dome will look like, there are significant differences in scope and scale to Israel's shield. The Iron Dome selectively protects populated areas from short-range threats in a country the size of New Jersey; Trump wants a space-based missile defense system capable of defending a country around 450 times larger, from advanced ballistic and hypersonic missiles. The project will cost about $175 billion, Trump said, and will be led by Gen. Michael A. Guetlein, vice chief of space operations at the United States Space Force. Trump said $25 billion dollars will be allocated from his sweeping spending cut and tax bill, which he's pushing House Republicans to pass. He also said 'Canada has called us' wanting to be involved in the project and to be protected under the Golden Dome. In a statement provided to Reuters, the office of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that he and his ministers, along with their American counterparts, were discussing how to negotiate a new security and economic relationship between the two countries – which 'naturally include strengthening NORAD and related initiatives such as the Golden Dome.' Earlier in May, the Pentagon submitted small, medium and large options to the White House for developing the Golden Dome. Trump didn't specify a final choice on Tuesday but said that they had 'selected an architecture for this state-of-the-art system.' The administration's cost and construction time estimates run contrary to those given by other military officials. Retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery previously told CNN he believes creating a ballistic missile defense system may be possible in 7 to 10 years, but even then, it will have severe limitations, potentially capable of protecting only critical federal buildings and major cities. Other experts have told CNN that several hundreds of billions of dollars would probably be a conservative estimate, with some saying projecting the total cost of such a project was essentially impossible. The US has talked about building a missile shield for decades, but it has never been realized because of gaps in technology and cost. The Defense Intelligence Agency recently released an unclassified assessment underscoring how US adversaries like China, Russia, Iran and North Korea could potentially target the American mainland with a variety of ballistic missiles, long-range cruise missiles, bombers and hypersonic missiles. Constructing the shield is a massively complex task that will require a network of government agencies and private contractors, according to multiple sources familiar with the planning process.
CNN
21-05-2025
- Business
- CNN
Trump lays out Golden Dome missile defense plan, claims will be done by end of term
President Donald Trump has laid out new details of his ambitious plan to build a 'Golden Dome' missile defense system to protect the United States from foreign attacks, saying it should be complete before he leaves office. 'We'll have it done in three years,' Trump told reporters as he detailed the plan in the Oval Office on Tuesday. 'Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world.' High-profile defense contractors and tech companies - including Elon Musk's SpaceX - are already jockeying for the job to build the shield, making pitches directly to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The US administration has remained vague on its plans for developing the missile shield, which takes inspiration from Israel's Iron Dome. While it is not yet clear what exactly the Golden Dome will look like, there are significant differences in scope and scale to Israel's shield. The Iron Dome selectively protects populated areas from short-range threats in a country the size of New Jersey; Trump wants a space-based missile defense system capable of defending a country around 450 times larger, from advanced ballistic and hypersonic missiles. The project will cost about $175 billion dollars, Trump said, and will be led by Gen. Michael A. Guetlein, vice chief of space operations at the United States Space Force. Trump said $25 billion dollars will be allocated from his sweeping spending cut and tax bill, which he's pushing House Republicans to pass. Earlier in May, the Pentagon submitted small, medium and large options to the White House for developing the Golden Dome. Trump didn't specify a final choice on Tuesday but said that they had 'selected an architecture for this state-of-the-art system.' The administration's cost and construction time estimates run contrary to those given by other military officials. Retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery previously told CNN he believes creating a ballistic missile defense system may be possible in 7 to 10 years, but even then, it will have severe limitations, potentially capable of protecting only critical federal buildings and major cities. Other experts have told CNN that several hundreds of billions of dollars would probably be a conservative estimate, with some saying projecting the total cost of such a project was essentially impossible. The US has talked about building a missile shield for decades, but it has never been realized because of gaps in technology and cost. The Defense Intelligence Agency recently released an unclassified assessment underscoring how US adversaries like China, Russia, Iran and North Korea could potentially target the American mainland with a variety of ballistic missiles, long-range cruise missiles, bombers and hypersonic missiles. Constructing the shield is a massively complex task that will require a network of government agencies and private contractors, according to multiple sources familiar with the planning process.
CNN
21-05-2025
- Business
- CNN
Trump lays out Golden Dome missile defense plan, claims will be done by end of term
President Donald Trump has laid out new details of his ambitious plan to build a 'Golden Dome' missile defense system to protect the United States from foreign attacks, saying it should be complete before he leaves office. 'We'll have it done in three years,' Trump told reporters as he detailed the plan in the Oval Office on Tuesday. 'Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world.' High-profile defense contractors and tech companies - including Elon Musk's SpaceX - are already jockeying for the job to build the shield, making pitches directly to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The US administration has remained vague on its plans for developing the missile shield, which takes inspiration from Israel's Iron Dome. While it is not yet clear what exactly the Golden Dome will look like, there are significant differences in scope and scale to Israel's shield. The Iron Dome selectively protects populated areas from short-range threats in a country the size of New Jersey; Trump wants a space-based missile defense system capable of defending a country around 450 times larger, from advanced ballistic and hypersonic missiles. The project will cost about $175 billion dollars, Trump said, and will be led by Gen. Michael A. Guetlein, vice chief of space operations at the United States Space Force. Trump said $25 billion dollars will be allocated from his sweeping spending cut and tax bill, which he's pushing House Republicans to pass. Earlier in May, the Pentagon submitted small, medium and large options to the White House for developing the Golden Dome. Trump didn't specify a final choice on Tuesday but said that they had 'selected an architecture for this state-of-the-art system.' The administration's cost and construction time estimates run contrary to those given by other military officials. Retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery previously told CNN he believes creating a ballistic missile defense system may be possible in 7 to 10 years, but even then, it will have severe limitations, potentially capable of protecting only critical federal buildings and major cities. Other experts have told CNN that several hundreds of billions of dollars would probably be a conservative estimate, with some saying projecting the total cost of such a project was essentially impossible. The US has talked about building a missile shield for decades, but it has never been realized because of gaps in technology and cost. The Defense Intelligence Agency recently released an unclassified assessment underscoring how US adversaries like China, Russia, Iran and North Korea could potentially target the American mainland with a variety of ballistic missiles, long-range cruise missiles, bombers and hypersonic missiles. Constructing the shield is a massively complex task that will require a network of government agencies and private contractors, according to multiple sources familiar with the planning process.
