Canada discussing joining US 'Golden Dome' as Putin signals no issues

Canada discussing joining US 'Golden Dome' as Putin signals no issues
by AFP Staff Writers
Ottawa (AFP) May 21, 2025

Canada has been holding "high level" talks with its southern neighbor about joining US President Donald Trump's proposed "Golden Dome" missile defense system, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday.

"We are conscious that we have an ability, if we so choose, to complete the Golden Dome with investments in partnership (with the US). And it's something that we are looking at and something that has been discussed at a high level," he told a news conference.

Trump wants a system that can defend against a wide array of enemy weapons -- from intercontinental ballistic missiles to hypersonic and cruise missiles and drones -- asking for it to be ready in about three years, near the end of his second term in office.

But it faces significant technical and political challenges.

Carney warned of new and increasing missile threats "that in the not too distant future could come from space."

"We take those threats seriously," he said.

Canada and the United States are partners in continental defense through the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

At the same time, Ottawa is looking to diversify its trade and security partnerships after once strong Canada-US ties have frayed.

It recently announced a review of a major purchase of US-made F-35 combat planes and signed a deal with Australia to develop Arctic radar systems.

Carney said his government is also in talks with European allies on "becoming a full partner of ReArm Europe," an initiative to bolster European defense capabilities and industry.

In tone shift, Kremlin calls Trump's Golden Dome plan 'sovereign matter'
Moscow (AFP) May 21, 2025 - The Kremlin said Wednesday that Donald Trump's plan for a "Golden Dome" missile shield required consultations with Russia but was otherwise a "sovereign matter" for the United States, softening its tone after previously slamming the idea as destabilising.

The proposal, which Trump ordered a week after his inauguration in January, would see Washington deploy missile interceptors in space to protect against ballistic and hypersonic threats.

Unveiling new details on initial funding for the project on Tuesday, Trump called it "important for the success and even survival of our country".

"This is a sovereign matter for the United States. If the United States believes that there is a missile threat, then of course it will develop a missile defence system," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters including AFP on Wednesday.

"That is what all countries do," he added.

"Of course, in the foreseeable future, the course of events will require the resumption of contacts to restore strategic stability," he added, referring to broader nuclear talks.

Peskov's comments came two days after a call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin that the US leader said "went very well".

Since taking office, Trump has sought to warm ties with the Kremlin, reaching out to Putin directly in a bid to broker an end to the three-year Ukraine conflict.

Russia previously denounced the Golden Dome plan, warning it risked turning space into a "battlefield".

In a joint statement with China earlier this month, both countries denounced the idea as "deeply destabilising".

The plan's Golden Dome name stems from Israel's Iron Dome air defence system which has intercepted thousands of short-range rockets and other projectiles since it went into operation in 2011.

Washington faces various missile threats from adversaries, but they differ significantly from the short-range weapons that Israel's Iron Dome is designed to counter.

Beijing, which has deepened cooperation with Moscow in recent years, on Wednesday described Trump's plans as a threat to international security.

Russia and the United States have the world's two largest arsenals of nuclear warheads.