'Canada will have to pay...': Trump unveils $175 billion ‘Golden Dome’ missile defence plan

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) shared new details about his administration’s $175 billion missile defence plan, called the “Golden Dome”.

Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said the system’s design had been finalised and would be led by Vice Chief of Space Operations General Michael Guetlein.

He added that the defence shield would work with existing systems and be fully ready within three years—before the end of his second term.

“In the campaign I promised the American people I would build a cutting-edge missile defense shield,” Trump said at the White House. “Today I am pleased to announce we have officially selected architecture for this state-of-the-art system.”

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“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 are launched from space,” Trump said. “This is very important for the success and even survival of our country.”

He said US Space Force General Michael Guetlein will lead the effort, and that Canada has expressed interest in being part of it as “they want to have protection also.”

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

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

The 2022 Missile Defense Review pointed to growing threats from Russia and China.

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, the document said.

It also said that 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.

Russia and China earlier this month slammed the Golden Dome concept as “deeply destabilizing,” saying it risked turning space into a “battlefield.”