Costs remain unclear for Canada to join Trump’s Golden Dome

By Canadian Press on May 22, 2025.

OTTAWA — An anti-weapons proliferation group says if Prime Minister Mark Carney signs on to U.S. President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defence shield, Canada could face ballooning financial costs.

Jessica West, a researcher at Project Ploughshares, warns there are a lot of unanswered questions about the project and cautions it could even trigger an arms race in space.

Carney said on Wednesday Canada may be interested in making investments in Trump’s new $175-billion initiative — but he wouldn’t speak to the costs of joining.

But former Liberal defence minister David Pratt says Canada signing up could be a step in the right direction for the country.

He says this could be an opportunity to correct the Paul Martin government’s decision in 2005 to not join the ballistic missile defence program initiated by then president George W. Bush.

Pratt says that led to a “disjointed” North American defence command structure that excludes Canada from making decisions about countering ballistic missile threats to the country.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2025.

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press