Without saying ‘Golden Dome,’ McGuinty touts U.S. missile defence co-operation

The words “ prosperous covered stadium” didn’t traverse his lips.

But Defence government minister st. David McGuinty might as well have used the term as he got more vocally behind a growing partnership with the United States to protect North America from ballistic and cruise missile threats posed by “malign state actors.”

McGuinty, speaking at a Canada-U.S. Conference in Toronto put on by the Eurasia Group and BMO, reiterated that Canada is in discussions with Washington about the need for an air defence shield over North America.

The country “needs to be able to detect what’s coming at us,” McGuinty told the audience.

While Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government has not explicitly said it was going to join the program championed by U.S. President Donald Trump, the groundwork has been quietly laid for months.

What could Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ mean for Canada?

Carney, in the spring, acknowledged Canada was talking to the Trump administration about the Golden Dome. 

In July, McGuinty said Canada would explore air and missile defence capabilities, and without much fanfare removed restrictions on missile defence activities. 

The decision also followed a broad hint in last year’s defence policy update that — as part of North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) modernization — Canada would further explore “integrated air and missile defence capabilities.”

Canada is “talking to the United States now about what we call a continental shield, because we’re going to need one,” McGuinty said on Wednesday.

The term Golden Dome is a catchphrase for a system that links surveillance — in space, in the air, on the ground and at sea through advanced radar systems — with anti-missile and counter-drone batteries, such as the U.S-made Patriot system. The intention is to detect, track and defeat any air or missile threat launched from anywhere in the world.

Trump has said it would cost Canada $61 billion US to join the program. He has been fond of adding that should Canada become the 51st state, it would cost nothing.

The Liberal government has yet to square how the cost of joining Golden Dome would be reflected in Canada’s existing $38-billion contribution to the modernization of NORAD announced a couple of years ago.

Estimates in Washington suggest the program could cost $175 billion US, but critics in that country have said, given the scope of Trump’s ambitions, that price tag is too low. 

To be clear: Golden Dome is still under development.

Some analysts in the defence community have argued that Canada cannot avoid being part of an integrated missile defence with the United States by virtue of its long-standing participation in NORAD. At the moment, the binational defence command has the capability to detect certain incoming threats, but does not have the complete mandate nor capability to shoot down all of them — such as cruise missiles.

Since 2005, Canada has deliberately chosen to remain outside of Washington’s existing ballistic missile defence (BMD) system. That was scrapped with McGuinty’s statement last summer.

One of the questions in front of Canadian policymakers is what kind of defence Canada will get for being part of Golden Dome. Open-sourced publications in the U.S. Show much of the research is focused on protecting the lower 48 states.

Another technical problem is the vast distances that would have to be covered and protected. Unlike Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system, which protects 22,000 square kilometres of land, the Golden Dome would cover 9.8 million square kilometres in the U.S. And 9.9 million in Canada.

Senior reporter, defence and security

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