Trump Orders Development of US Missile Defense Modeled After Israel’s Iron Dome
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday directing the development of an advanced missile defense system for the United States, modeled after Israel’s Iron Dome. The move fulfills a campaign promise to enhance US military readiness and protect against threats from ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missiles. The executive order emphasizes the urgency of this initiative, citing evolving global threats that demand a comprehensive defense strategy.
The executive order prioritizes the rapid deployment of advanced technologies, including space-based sensors, hypersonic tracking capabilities, and missile interceptors. The system aims to shield the US from next-generation air and space-based threats while providing additional protection for American forces stationed abroad. “The lawful orders of the president of the United States will be executed. … We will be no better friend to our allies, and no stronger adversary to those who want to test us,” newly appointed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said during a Pentagon briefing.
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Victoria Coates, a national security expert and vice president at the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy, applauded the initiative. “President Trump’s comprehensive missile defense plan for the United States will fulfill President Reagan’s vision for the Strategic Defense Initiative laid out some four decades ago,” Coates said, referencing Reagan’s 1983 missile defense strategy. Coates emphasized that the system, like Israel’s Iron Dome, would provide robust, peace-oriented protection, ensuring the safety of the American people.
Hegseth described the initiative as a key step in shifting the Defense Department’s focus toward deterring adversaries like China. He noted that the department would work swiftly to field new technologies that complement existing missile defense infrastructure, such as the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system in Alaska and California.
The White House emphasized that the proposed missile defense shield would address the increasing sophistication of global missile technology, an issue that has become more pressing in recent years. “This is a shift,” Hegseth said. “This is not the way business has been done in the past.”
For more background, read The Media Line’s coverage of President Trump’s missile defense proposal: Trump Proposes US Defense Modeled After Israel’s Iron Dome.
