Israeli leaders say the system isn’t 100% guaranteed, but credit it with preventing serious damage and countless casualties.

The so-called "Golden Dome", inspired by Israel's land-based Iron Dome defense shield, is an ambitious project aimed at blocking threats from China and Russia, which the United States views as its two biggest geopolitical competitors.

Chuck DeVore, expert at Texas Public Policy Foundation, argued a decreased cost to orbit made it less expensive to defend against nuclear missiles than to build a bigger nuclear arsenal, with Golden Dome changing the game of homeland defenses.

China has raised "grave" concerns over President Donald Trump's proposed "Golden Dome" anti-missile defense system, warning that it will trigger an arms race in space. "It will exacerbate the risk of turning outer space into a battlefield and starting an arms race,