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Business Times
22-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Trump's ‘Golden Dome' US missile defence plan faces major challenges
[WASHINGTON] US President Donald Trump's plan for a nationwide missile defence system - dubbed 'Golden Dome' - faces significant technical and political challenges, and it could cost far more than he has estimated to achieve its goals. 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 defence industrial base, and political will. They can all be overcome, but it will take focus and prioritisation,' said Melanie Marlowe, a non-resident senior associate in the Missile Defence Project at Washington's Centre 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 defence 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. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Trump on Tuesday announced an initial US$25 billion in funding for Golden Dome, saying its eventual cost would be about US$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 US$161 billion and US$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 defence 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 modernising its intercontinental-range missile systems and developing advanced precision strike missiles, according to the Pentagon's 2022 Missile Defence 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 defence budget. This is serious, serious money,' Withington said. 'I'm not holding my breath as to whether we will actually ever see this capability.'
News18
21-05-2025
- Business
- News18
What Is Golden Dome? 1st US Defence System To Be Deployed In Space
Last Updated: US President Donald Trump announced a futuristic defence system for the US -- Golden Dome -- to be built at an estimated cost of $175 billion. US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced his plans for a $175 billion missile defence system – 'Golden Dome' – which will be the first United States weapon in space. The cutting-edge weapon is expected to be operational by the end of his term at the White House, he said. 'In the campaign, I promised the American people I would build a cutting-edge missile defence shield. Today, I am pleased to announce we have officially selected the architecture for this state-of-the-art system," Trump said. '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," he added. What Is US Golden Dome? The Golden Dome announced by the US will be a missile defence system that will be based on both on the ground and in space. It will be designed to detect, track and taken down missiles at different stages of their flight, which also includes destroying them before they launch or while they are still in the air. Trump has described the futuristic system as 'very important for the success and even survival" of the US. 'It will deploy next-generation technologies across the land, sea, and space, including space-based sensors and interceptors," the President said. According to Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, the Golden Dome will integrate with the current defence systems and will act as a shield against 'the homeland from cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles, drones, whether they're conventional or nuclear". When Will Golden Dome Be Deployed? The President said that the new system will be operational in nearly three years, around the time his office term ends. According to a Forbes report, the cost of the project will be spread out over a period of 20 years. Countries Interested In Golden Dome Golden Dome will be made for the protection of the United States from all kinds of adversaries, however, Trump has said that Canada, its neighbour on the northern border, has also expressed interest in joining the project, saying they 'want to have protection also." Golden Dome: An Idea Stemming From Israel's Iron Dome? Trump's idea for America's Golden Dome stems from Israel's Iron Dome air defence system that has proved handy in taking down thousands of short-range rockets, among other projectiles, launched by Hamas from Gaza since 2011. A Missile Defence Review in 2022 flagged increasing threats from the US' adversaries, such as China and Russia. Russia, China Oppose Trump's Plan Earlier this month, Russia and China strongly criticised the Golden Dome project, calling it 'deeply destabilising" and warning that it could turn space into a 'battlefield." In a statement released by the Kremlin after talks between the two countries, they said the system 'explicitly provides for a significant strengthening of the arsenal for conducting combat operations in space." Watch India Pakistan Breaking News on CNN-News18. Get breaking news, in-depth analysis, and expert perspectives on everything from geopolitics to diplomacy and global trends. Stay informed with the latest world news only on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! First Published: May 21, 2025, 09:26 IST
