Trump wants a "Golden Dome" capable of protecting the entire territory of the United States - media
Kyiv • UNN
The Trump administration is seeking to create a missile defense system similar to the Israeli "Iron Dome". The "Golden Dome" project requires billions of dollars for development.
The American military is trying to develop a "Golden Dome" defense system that can protect the country from long-range missile strikes, and the White House has told them that it will spare no expense to fulfill one of the top priorities of the Pentagon of US President Donald Trump. CNN reports this with reference to numerous sources familiar with the matter, reports UNN.
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According to media reports, the "Golden Dome" is an attempt by the Trump administration to rename vague plans to develop a missile defense system similar to the Israeli "Iron Dome."
While the Pentagon seeks to cut budgets, the Trump administration has ordered military officials to ensure that future funding for the "Golden Dome" is reflected in new budget estimates for 2026–2030, but the system itself remains uncertain, with the exception of the name, sources said.
"Right now, the Golden Dome is just an idea," said one source familiar with internal discussions of the project, adding that there may be technologies under development that, if ever scaled, could be applied to it, but for now the discussions are purely conceptual.
This makes forecasting future costs virtually impossible, the source added, although it would likely cost billions of dollars to build and maintain.
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Trump has repeatedly insisted that the United States needs a missile defense program similar to Israel's Iron Dome, but these systems differ by orders of magnitude. From a practical point of view, the comparison is not so much apples to oranges as apples to aircraft carriers.
The Israeli Iron Dome missile defense system 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 protecting the entire United States from modern ballistic and hypersonic missiles.
First of all, "Israel is tiny," said a source familiar with the current internal discussions of the Golden Dome project. "So it is 100% feasible to cover Israel with things like radars and a combination of mobile and stationary interceptors."
"How are you going to do this in the United States? You can't do it just on the borders and coastline because intercontinental ballistic missiles can re-enter the atmosphere over Kansas."
Nevertheless, Trump issued an executive order in the first week of his term, instructing Secretary of Defense Pete Hegset to submit a plan to develop and implement a next-generation missile shield by March 28.
And a senior Pentagon official insisted earlier this week that work is underway.
At the same time, Pentagon officials are revising the Department of Defense's 2026 budget proposal to reflect Hegset's priorities, which were outlined in a memo sent to senior leadership last week and represent a major restructuring of the military's strategic goals, according to a copy obtained by CNN.
The memo specifically directs Pentagon leaders to focus on strengthening missile defense of US territory with Trump's "Golden Dome."
"There is currently a rigorous analytical process to revise [the budget]," Morani added. "This is standard practice for any new administration that takes office."
But it remains unclear how much money the Pentagon will request for Trump's "Golden Dome" in its budget proposal or how officials will determine the amount of funding needed.
Retired Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery believes that creating a missile defense system may be possible in 7–10 years, but even then it will have serious limitations, potentially capable of protecting only critical federal buildings and major cities.
"The closer you want to get to 100%, the more expensive it will be," said Montgomery, senior director of the Center for Cyber and Technological Innovation at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
A comprehensive system would require different sets of satellites for communication, detecting incoming missiles and launching interceptors, Montgomery told CNN. Such types of systems are long-term projects, he said, requiring existing defenses to fill the gap at the same time.
"You have to be responsible here," Montgomery said. "You will not be able to protect everything with these ground-based missiles. They protect the circle around them, but it's not big."
