‘Iron Dome’ Should Be Built From the Ground Up
Space-based interceptors and lasers get all the attention. But the best way the US can protect itself is by upgrading and expanding existing defenses.
More interceptors needed.
Photographer: Chris Bishop/US Navy/Getty Images
The US military is looking to the heavens to counter a growing threat: the vast range of sophisticated ballistic, hypersonic and cruise missiles that rivals are building and pointing its way. To make America safer, though, the Pentagon first needs to bolster defenses on the ground.
The White House is hoping to erect an “iron dome” missile shield to defend the homeland, echoing Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars initiative from the 1980s. The danger is real. North Korea is rapidly expanding its fleet of ballistic missiles. Russia claims to have produced a suite of exotic weapons, from a superheavy intercontinental ballistic missile to a nuclear-powered torpedo, designed to overcome current defenses. China is expected to nearly double its arsenal of nuclear warheads by 2030 and is developing hypersonic and long-range cruise missiles to enable conventional strikes on the US.