The Iron Dome’s success in protecting the Israeli homeland has caught both Taiwan’s and America’s attention.

In light of China’s increasing threats and general military buildup, the island nation of Taiwan is prioritizing its defense. The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has been steadily intensifying hostilities in the Indo-Pacific for years, forcing Taiwan and its allies to rethink deterrence. Most recently, Taiwan pledged a special $40 billion budget for arms purchases, including a domestically-produced Iron Dome. Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, announced that the funds would be allocated to the Republic of China’s (ROC) military over a span of eight years. 

Lai had previously promised to raise the island nation’s defense spending to 5 percent of its overall GDP as part of its efforts to thwart Chinese aggression. “China’s threats to Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific region are escalating,” Lai said Wednesday. “Recently, various types of military intrusions, maritime gray zones and disinformation campaigns have been occurring in Japan, the Philippines and around the Taiwan Strait, causing deep unease and distress to all parties in the region.”

The crux of Taiwan’s defensive buildup is its own “Taiwan Dome” missile shield. Aimed to mirror Israel’s famous Iron Dome, the multilayered air defense apparatus will help create a safety net over the island nation. According to Taiwanese news outlet Focus Taiwan, the “T-Dome” will be constructed to complement the nation’s existing missile and radar network. In the past, Lai had pointed to Israel as Taiwan’s defense role model. Specifically, Reuters and other outlets have reported that Lai views Israel’s layered missile defense systems as a template for how a small democracy can survive near larger and more hostile authoritarian neighbors.

Introducing the Iron Dome

Israel’s Iron Dome has become quite popular over the last two years, following the Gaza war that has embroiled the country’s military since October 2023. Developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems with US funding, the Iron Dome was initially introduced into service back in 2011 as a measure to thwart missile barrages launched toward Israel by Iran’s regional proxy affiliates. The Iron Dome was designed to counter short-range rockets and 155mm artillery shell threats up to ranges of 70km. The Iron Dome detects and tracks incoming rockets with radar and calculates which ones could land in populated areas in the country. The air defense system then fires missiles at these rockets, leaving the others to fall on open ground. With a success rate of over 90 percent, the Iron Dome played an instrumental role in protecting Israeli civilian lives in recent years.

The Iron Dome’s success in protecting the Israeli homeland has also caught the attention of the United States. President Donald Trump has announced the White House’s own plan to develop a “Golden Dome” to defend America in an effort to contend with potential future barrages launched from Iran, Russia, China, or even North Korea. While some analysts have been vocally skeptical about the costs and usefulness of such a massive project, the Trump team has not backed down from its Golden Dome vision.