TAMARA LORINCZ
26 May 2025
In a recent press conference, Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed Canada is evaluating its participation in the Trump administration’s Golden Dome program.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced a nextgeneration missile defence shield for a cost of $175 billion and named a U.S. Space Force General to lead it.
The Golden Dome is a multilayered shield that integrates ground, sea, air and spacebased interceptors to purportedly protect the U.S. homeland from missile attacks launched by adversaries. The shield will require the placement of hundreds of new satellites with sophisticated sensors and interceptors in low-Earth orbit.
Trump claimed Golden Dome would “all be made in the U.S.” and completed in the next four years. He also said Canada wanted to join the program and would “pay its fair share.” Yet, the U.S. Congressional Budget Office estimates the cost would be in excess of $500 billion over the next 20 years.
Trump explained Golden Dome will complete what president Ronald Reagan started in the 1980s with the Strategic Defense Initiative, which was also known as “Star Wars.”
However, MIT professor emeritus Ted Postol, who is a leading expert on missile defence, calls Trump’s Golden Dome “science fiction.” He is the scientist who proved that the U.S. Patriot system did not work against Iraqi scud missile during the first Gulf War. Postol also determined the U.S.financed Israeli Iron Dome has had a “low success” rate.
In an extensive interview, Postol explained interceptors cannot detect the difference between warheads and decoys and the Golden Dome system will be easily negated.
He argued it is the weapons manufacturers that want the missile defence program, because it’s another cash cow that will enrich the militaryindustrial complex. Forbes reported that Space X, Palantir and Anduril are the front runners in a joint bid.
Carney stated that Canadian officials have been in discussions at the highest level with the White House on participation in the Golden Dome.
Yet, Canadians also deserve to participate in public consultations and have a parliamentary hearing about the country’s involvement before any final decision is made, because of the serious risks and costs.
As the presidential executive order outlined, the new missile defence system will create a “warfighter space architecture.” Golden Dome will lead to the weaponization of space, which violates international law. It can also be used offensively, so it dangerously leads to an arms race and risks the use of nuclear weapons.
Moreover, the environmental and climate impacts have not been considered. More military satellites will result in more pollution in space. The European Space Agency estimates there are now over 140 million space debris objects.
Canada cannot afford another expensive U.S. weapons system. Ottawa has already announced $38 billion for Norad modernization with the U.S., $19 billion for new American F35 fighter jets, $5 billion for American Reaper drones and $22 billion for three naval destroyers with Lockheed Martin’s Aegis missile system.
Postol said that more responsible, costeffective solutions involve arms control and the normalization of relations with Russia.
The U.S. should immediately reinstate the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty, which Trump withdrew from in 2018 during his first administration and cancel plans to deploy new American longrange missile to Germany scheduled for 2026.
Carney instead should lead an international initiative to enhance cooperation with all countries on the peaceful uses of space under the 1967 Outer Space Treaty and the implementation of the principle of the “Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space.”
Twenty years ago, the Liberal government prudently listened to the Canadian public and announced it would not join the U.S. ballistic missile defence program. Ottawa should again stay out of Trump’s Star Wars II.
TAMARA LORINCZ IS A PHD CANDIDATE AT THE BALSILLIE SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY AND A MEMBER OF THE CANADIAN FOREIGN POLICY INSTITUTE.
