US President Donald Trump said his planned acquisition of Greenland is crucial for his $175-billion ‘Golden Dome’ defence project. Here’s what we know so far about the system.
US President Donald Trump said he needs Greenland for his planned “Golden Dome for America”, a missile defence shield.
“The United States needs Greenland for the purpose of national security,” Trump wrote last week on his social media platform, Truth Social. “It is vital for the Golden Dome that we are building,” adding that NATO should support the US’ acquisition of the island because the alliance becomes “far more formidable,” with it.
Trump’s Golden Dome defence system would protect the country from the threat of foreign missile attack, according to a US executive order signed last May.
Trump claims the Golden Dome would be able to shoot down hypersonic, ballistic, and advanced cruise missiles and drones, even if they are launched from the other side of the world or from space.
This is what we know so far about the Golden Dome project, including who is working on it and what weapons could be involved.
Which weapons could be used for the Golden Dome?
The Golden Dome may incorporate “some or all” of the US’ current missile defence systems in sensing, intercept and command, according to a September reportfrom the US Congress.
The report lists several technologies that the US already has that could be integrated into the Golden Dome, such as long-range, space-based or early warning radar systems.
The Dome could include the US’s ballistic missile defence capabilities, such as the Terminal High Altitude Aerial Defence (THAAD) system and the Patriot system that can intercept cruise missiles, hypersonic weapons and large drones, the Congress report said.
The report also notes that Trump’s administration “has not publicly provided a comprehensive picture of the systems, procurement plans, timelines and operational concepts involved,” in the Golden Dome.
At the initial press conference for the Golden Dome, senators named as potential contractors L3Harris Technologies, Lockheed Martin, and RTX (formerly Raytheon).
Aerospace and defence company Lockheed Martin said it has built a prototype for a “command and control,” or C2 capabilities for the Golden Dome that it will “connect sensors, shooters, and platforms across all domains, from seabed to space”.
The company said its prototype is important because it “perform[s] the crucial task of integrating data from various sensors and coordinating direct actions,” like launching interceptor missiles in “fast, more confident” responses to threats.
In January, the company said it is “ready to support” the Golden Dome project with its PAC-3 MSE missile defence system, its F-35 fighter jets, satellites and maritime vessels.
Last year, communications systems company L3Harris announced it expanded plants in the states of Indiana and Florida to work on "on-orbit technology" for the Golden Dome.
The company said in August that it is already developing 34 satellites dedicated to “hypersonic missile tracking” for the country’s Department of War.,
No contracts awarded yet
As of now, the American government has not publicly announced any contract awards for the Golden Dome project.
However, the US Missile Defence Agency (MDA) announced three rounds of staggered awards in December and January to over 2,000 companies, such as Lockheed Martin, L3Harris, and Raytheon (RTX), under the Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defence (SHIELD) contract.
The initial SHIELD awards are meant to establish a portfolio of qualified firms that may compete for Golden Dome contracts, according to defence publication Defense News.
The programme is supposed to make it easier for the US Department of Defence and the MDA to complete orders “under one flexible enterprise vehicle,” with a funding ceiling of up to $151 billion (€128.4 billion) over the next decade, according to the government.
Do other multi-layered defence systems exist?
The United States could also include joint weapons developed with Israel for their layered defence system.
Commonly known as the "Iron Dome," Israel’s system is capable of detecting incoming fire and deploying only if the projectile is headed towards a population centre or sensitive military or civilian infrastructure.
Israel uses a combination of the Arrow, David’s Sling, and the Iron Dome to protect itself from long, medium, and short-range missiles.
The Arrow weapons system is a family of interceptive missiles that "surveil, detect, track, and kill" incoming attacks "far away from their target," with a fully automated control system, according to an Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI). It was developed by the IAI in cooperation with the US company Boeing.
David’s Sling, the medium-range defence system developed by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence Systems and the US’ RTX, offers "hit-to-kill" defence against ballistic missiles, enemy planes, and drones. The Iron Dome then works exclusively to deter the short-range threats.
Israeli officials say the system isn’t 100 percent effective but still credit it as having played a critical role in the country’s defence from various rocket and missile fire from Iran and militia groups in the Israel-Hamas conflict launched on October 7, 2023.
Europe is also working on its own version. In 2022, 21 European countries launched the European "Sky Shield" Initiative, whereby they agreed to cooperate in how defence systems are procured, maintained, and how to support each other.
Any weapons procured for the Sky Shield will then be folded into an existing NATO mission that "protects Alliance territory… against any air or missile threat or attack," according to the organisation.
Meanwhile, last year, Italian defence company Leonardo unveiled plans for a shield powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to protect cities and critical infrastructure amid geopolitical tensions.
Some countries, such as Germany, have signed contracts with Israel or the US for the Arrow rocket system as part of Sky Shield.
This story was originally published on 23/05/2025 and was updated.
