By Thierry Meyssan
Voltairenet.org
January 30, 2026
While China, Russia, and the United States are reshaping the world, President Trump is engaging in a perilous exercise of overvaluing his legacy. He has managed to convince us that he chose to withdraw from NATO, when in fact he can no longer remain. He finds himself, in reality, in the same position as Mikhail Gorbachev when he withdrew from the Warsaw Pact: on the brink of disaster.
During the first year of his second term, President Donald Trump announced his intention to propel the United States armed forces into a position of undeniable superiority.
The US Golden Dome is intended to protect not just the United States, but the entire American continent, by countering "the threat of ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missiles." It is inspired by Reagan's "Star Wars" program and takes its name from Israel's Iron Dome. This mission was entrusted to General Michael Guetlein, and a budget of $175 billion was allocated for it. [1]
According to the decree, the Golden Dome should include:
- Space-based sensors for hypersonic and ballistic tracking;
- Space interceptors for the acceleration phase;
- Sub-layer and terminal phase interception capabilities;
- A guard layer of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA), itself to be made up of seven layers to be implemented in four tranches from 2026 to 2030;
- Capabilities intended for pre-launch and during the propulsion phase;
- So-called "non-kinetic" capabilities to reinforce the system.
• The War Department (September 5, 2025)
President Trump renamed the Department of Defense the Department of War, as it was known until the end of World War II.
He also initiated a reform of the armed forces to cultivate a "warrior spirit." He announced that promotions would henceforth be based solely on merit, without regard for ethnicity.
One recalls the remarks about overweight, "armchair" officers who were encouraged to resign before being dismissed.
In response to the growing strength of the Chinese navy, President Trump announced the construction of the Golden Fleet. Initially, ten battleships of the Trump class will be built. They will be capable of carrying conventional guns and nuclear-armed cruise missiles.
• The military budget (January 7, 2026)
Finally, President Trump announced his intention to increase the defense budget by approximately 50%. This would bring it in line with the combined defense budgets of the rest of the world.
The United States has published both its National Security Strategy 2026 [2] and its National Defense Strategy 2026, but it is keeping its Nuclear Posture Review 2026 secret.
Washington is leaving its nuclear strategy ambiguous. The Golden Dome project, if implemented, calls into question the very notion of balance. The treaty that established the balance of terror with Russia expires on February 5th. The United States has declined to resume negotiations.
In any case, these grandiose projects are unlikely to materialize. The construction of the Golden Dome is still only a sketch, its architecture yet to be designed. The Golden Fleet project is impossible, in the short and medium term, for American shipyards.
As for the budgetary aspects, they involve sums that are unattainable given the current state of the economy. The Trump administration's primary challenge is the excessive debt of the United States, inherited from previous administrations [3]. It has exceeded $38 trillion.
The announcement of $1 trillion in investment in the United States by Saudi Arabia and $1.4 trillion by the United Arab Emirates is nothing but smoke and mirrors [4]. Besides the fact that this money represents nothing compared to the US national debt, Saudi Arabia has not yet disbursed any of what it announced. Its coffers are empty. All its cash is being absorbed by its Saudi Vision 2030 project (the construction of NEOM and The Line).
In reality, we are witnessing the fall of the American Empire, modeled on the fall of the Soviet Empire. Mikhail Gorbachev first dismantled the Warsaw Pact before acknowledging the collapse of the USSR [5]. Today, President Trump is dismantling the Atlantic Alliance, hoping not to have to witness the end of the United States of America. His bluster should not impress us.
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[1 ] " The Iron Dome for America ", Trump Executive Order, January 27, 2025.
[2 ] " The Pentagon adopts the Trump vision of the world ", by Thierry Meyssan, Voltaire Network, December 10, 2025.
[3 ] " Is Donald Trump managing the possible collapse of the 'American empire'? ", by Thierry Meyssan, Voltaire Network, March 11, 2025.
[4 ] " Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Secures $200 Billion in New US-UAE Deals and Accelerates Previously Committed $1.4 Trillion UAE Investment," White House, May 15, 2025.
[5 ] " Trump, the American Gorbachev ", by Thierry Meyssan, Voltaire Network, January 30, 2018.