Trump picks design for $226b Golden Dome missile defence shield, appoints project leader

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said on May 20 that he had selected a design for the US$175 billion (S$226 billion) Golden Dome missile defence shield and named a US Space Force general to head the ambitious programme, aimed at blocking threats from China and Russia.

Mr Trump announced at a White House press conference that US Space Force General Michael Guetlein would be the lead programme manager for an effort widely viewed as the keystone to Mr Trump’s military planning.

Golden Dome will “protect our homeland”, Mr Trump said, adding that Canada had said it wanted to be part of it.

In a statement, the office of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he and his ministers were discussing a new security and economic relationship with their American counterparts.

“These discussions naturally include strengthening Norad (North American Aerospace Defence Command) and related initiatives such as the Golden Dome,” it added.

First ordered by Mr 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.

“Ronald Reagan wanted it many years ago, but they didn’t have the technology,” Mr Trump noted, referring to the space-based missile defence system, also referred to as “Star Wars”, proposed by former president Reagan.

Mr Trump said the project would be completed by the end of his term in January 2029, but industry experts were less certain of that time frame and the cost.

The programme faces both political scrutiny and funding uncertainty.

Mr Tom Karako from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said: “The new data point is the US$175 billion – but the question remains, over what period of time. It’s probably 10 years.” He added that Silicon Valley and US software expertise can be leveraged to bring advances, while also using existing missile defence systems.

The Congressional Budget Office in May estimated that Golden Dome could cost as much as US$831 billion over two decades.

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

Senator Kevin Cramer of North Dakota said at the White House press conference: “The new autonomous space-age defence ecosystem is more about Silicon Valley than it is about ‘big metal’. So what’s exciting about this is it makes it available to everybody to participate – to compete.”

“Big metal” refers to legacy defence contractors.

The Golden Dome idea was inspired by Israel’s land-based Iron Dome defence shield that protects it from missiles and rockets.

Mr 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.

The May 20 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.

Mr Trump, who said the project would be completed by the end of his term in January 2029, said Alaska will be a big part of the programme and named Florida, Georgia and Indiana as also benefiting from the project.

Many of the early systems are expected to come from existing production lines. Attendees at the press conference named L3Harris Technologies, Lockheed Martin and RTX as potential contractors for the massive project.

L3 has invested US$150 million in building its new facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where it makes the Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor satellites which are part of a Pentagon effort to better detect and track hypersonic weapons with space-based sensors and could be adapted for Golden Dome.

The funding for Golden Dome remains uncertain.

Republican lawmakers have proposed a US$25 billion initial investment for the project as part of a broader US$150 billion defence package, but this funding is tied to a contentious reconciliation Bill that faces significant hurdles in Congress.

An industry executive following the programme said: “Unless reconciliation passes, the funds for Golden Dome may not materialise. This puts the entire project timeline in jeopardy.” REUTERS