Trump Signs Executive Order for Construction of 'American Iron Dome'

The President of the United States has signed an executive order directing the commencement of the construction and development of an advanced missile defense system called the 'American Iron Dome.' According to Reuters, Donald Trump signed this executive order along with a series of other orders early Tuesday morning, February 29, while flying from Miami to Washington. The text of Trump's executive order has not yet been released, but the White House had previously announced that this system is designed to protect the U.S. against 'ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles, advanced cruise missiles, and other next-generation aerial attacks.' The construction of this system will take several years, and Trump has previously stated that it will be entirely produced in the United States. The construction of the Iron Dome was one of Trump's campaign promises, and he stated at a rally last July that he would order the construction of a 'large Iron Dome' as an advanced missile defense shield to protect the U.S. The Iron Dome is the name of Israel's short-range air defense system, built with U.S. assistance and operational in that country since 2011. This system fires guided missiles against short-range threats such as rockets, mortars, and drones. The intelligent system does not take action against a projectile if it determines that the trajectory poses no threat to open space or is safe. Bloomberg reported, citing a White House document, that according to Trump's request, the performance of the American system must be far superior to that of Israel's Iron Dome. The executive order to begin construction of the Iron Dome was signed on the first day of Pete Hegseth's work as the new U.S. Secretary of Defense. Trump also signed other orders that eliminate D.E.I. or 'Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion' from the military and restore thousands of military personnel who were discharged for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine.