Russia criticized the U.S.’ proposed Golden Dome missile defense system Monday, warning it could destabilize global nuclear deterrence, according to reports.

According to TASS, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev told Kommersant newspaper that the ambitious project is extremely ‘provocative.’

‘Problems in the strategic sphere resulting from destabilizing U.S. actions only continue to grow. It is enough to recall the highly provocative anti-missile project ‘Golden Dome for America,’’ he said, TASS reported.

‘It fundamentally contradicts the assertion of the inseparable interrelationship between offensive and defensive strategic arms, which, by the way, was enshrined in the preamble of New START,’ Medvedev added, citing the treaty that protects U.S. national security by placing limits on Russia’s deployed intercontinental nuclear weapons.

A defense expert says Russia’s reaction underscores the Golden Dome’s power as a geopolitical signal to the world.

‘Even before it has been built, the dome is military focused and politically focused and an incredible bargaining chip with U.S. adversaries,’ defense expert Cameron Chell told Fox News Digital.

‘In this case, it is Russia and China in particular, in terms of how the U.S. postures for negotiating peace terms, treaty terms and whether the U.S. will be negating their already existing arsenal,’ the Draganfly CEO claimed.

The Golden Dome is a long-term missile defense concept aimed at protecting North America from ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missile threats.

Chell spoke after the Pentagon released its National Defense Strategy on Jan. 23, outlining a renewed focus on homeland defense, expanded missile defense, counter-drone systems, cyber capabilities and long-range strike forces.

The planned Golden Dome missile defense shield is designed to defeat ‘large missile barrages and other advanced aerial attacks,’ the strategy said, while also hardening military and key civilian infrastructure against cyber strikes as Russia and China continue expanding their hypersonic weapons programs.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, China has also pushed back against the Golden Dome missile defense initiative, accusing Washington of undermining global strategic stability and risking the weaponization of outer space.

‘There’s big value in the talk and the build-out of Golden Dome, even long before it gets built, not to mention the research and technology development that comes out of it,’ Chell said.

‘The posturing and the economic benefits of building something like this are also factored into why the dome is so important.’

The project’s sheer scale is expected to drive its strategic impact but could also come with an enormous price tag.

‘The dome is going to take trillions to build and is the largest military project, probably the largest engineering and technology project ever attempted, so there are going to be challenges getting it done,’ Chell explained.

‘The U.S. has ten years of planning, including where they are going to have communication links, radar systems, and early warning systems.’ That planning, Chell noted, is shifting focus north.

‘In order to protect the U.S., you want to take things down before they get over the top of the country,’ Chell said.

‘Places like Canada, or even further north, become the dropping ground. You want to get these threats as soon as possible.’

Canada and Greenland are viewed by U.S. defense planners as critical for radar coverage, space tracking and early-warning infrastructure.

‘The idea is something being shot down from space, but to do that you need very detailed landscape data of the entire North and you need access to the North,’ Chell said.

President Trump has long argued the U.S. must control Greenland for national security reasons, citing its strategic Arctic location and natural resources.

‘There needs to be infrastructure and oversight in the far north, in Canada, in Greenland, and places like that,’ Chell said. ‘All that planning has to be done well ahead of time, before we have anything operational.’

Chell also pointed to the potential role of drones in supporting the Golden Dome’s broader mission.

‘Drones could be part of informing the Golden Dome as reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence tools,’ he said, adding that the ‘entire military complex is integrated.’

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Department of War for comment.

The Pentagon’s newly released National Defense Strategy warns that future wars may no longer be fought solely overseas, arguing the U.S. military must be prepared to conduct combat operations directly from the American homeland as adversaries gain the ability to strike the United States itself.

The strategy, released Friday evening, elevates homeland defense above all other missions, calling for expanded missile defense, counter-drone systems, cyber capabilities and long-range strike forces capable of launching decisive operations from U.S. soil. Pentagon planners describe a global threat environment that is faster, more dangerous and far less forgiving than in past decades.

‘The Joint Force must be ready to deter and, if called upon, to prevail … including the ability to launch decisive operations against targets anywhere — including directly from the U.S. Homeland,’ the strategy states.

‘More direct military threats to the American Homeland have also grown in recent years, including nuclear threats as well as a variety of conventional strike and space, cyber, electromagnetic warfare capabilities,’ it adds.

Russia and China both field intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the continental United States, while North Korea has tested long-range missiles that U.S. officials say are capable of hitting U.S. territory. Iran is not believed to possess intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching U.S. soil.

As a result, the Pentagon will prioritize President Donald Trump’s planned Golden Dome missile defense shield, with a focus on defeating ‘large missile barrages and other advanced aerial attacks,’ while also hardening military and key civilian infrastructure against cyber strikes. 

‘The United States should never — will never — be left vulnerable to nuclear blackmail,’ the strategy says, as it calls for continued modernization of the nation’s nuclear deterrent.

After years of focusing on a potential conflict with China in the Indo-Pacific, the strategy makes clear the Pentagon will seek what it calls a ‘stable peace’ with Beijing, including expanded military-to-military communications.

‘We will also be clear-eyed and realistic about the speed, scale, and quality of China’s historic military buildup,’ the document says. ‘Our goal … is simple: To prevent anyone, including China, from being able to dominate us or our allies.’

Pentagon planners argue deterrence will rely less on confrontation and more on denying China the ability to win a fight outright, particularly in the western Pacific, by blocking attempts to dominate U.S. allies or control key maritime routes.

But China is not the only concern.

The strategy warns the United States could face multiple crises at the same time, with adversaries acting together or exploiting moments of distraction — raising the risk that conflicts overseas could overlap and reach the homeland early.

To manage that risk, the Pentagon is pressing allies to shoulder more of the burden. The strategy calls on European and Indo-Pacific partners to dramatically increase defense spending, freeing U.S. forces to focus on homeland defense and the most dangerous threats.

The document also sharpens the Pentagon’s focus closer to home, treating border security, drug trafficking and access to key terrain as core military missions. It calls for readiness to take decisive action against narco-terrorist groups and to protect strategic locations including the Panama Canal and Greenland.

Distance, the strategy argues, is no longer a shield. Long-range missiles, cyber weapons and drones now allow adversaries to reach the United States directly, compressing warning times and raising the risk that future wars could hit American soil early.

To keep pace, the Pentagon calls for a rapid rebuild of the U.S. defense industrial base, warning that America must be able to produce weapons and equipment at scale if it hopes to deter — or survive — a prolonged fight.

The strategy describes Russia as a serious but declining threat, warning Moscow still poses dangers through its nuclear arsenal and cyber, space and undersea capabilities, even as the Pentagon argues Europe is now capable of taking the lead in its own defense.

‘Russia will remain a persistent but manageable threat to NATO’s eastern members for the foreseeable future,’ the document says, noting Russia continues to modernize ‘the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.’ The strategy makes clear Washington expects NATO allies to shoulder far more responsibility, arguing Europe’s economic and military potential far outpaces Russia’s if allies invest accordingly.

On Iran, the Pentagon paints a picture of a regime weakened by recent U.S. and Israeli military action but still dangerous and unpredictable.

‘Iran’s regime is weaker and more vulnerable than it has been in decades,’ the strategy says, while warning Iran’s leaders ‘have left open the possibility that they will try again to obtain a nuclear weapon.’

The document stresses Tehran’s continued hostility toward the United States and Israel, noting Iran ‘has the blood of Americans on its hands,’ and emphasizes empowering allies, particularly Israel and U.S. partners in the Gulf, to deter Iran and respond decisively if American interests are threatened.

Iran regularly touts its ballistic missile arsenal as a central pillar of its deterrent and retaliatory strategy, showcasing new medium-range and ‘hypersonic’ systems and warning they can strike regional rivals and U.S. interests in the Middle East. 

China, meanwhile, has pushed back strongly against the U.S. Golden Dome missile defense initiative, accusing Washington of undermining global strategic stability and risking the weaponization of outer space.

More and more brutal evidence of the Iranian regime’s crackdown on its own people is circulating online, as the true number of those killed in Iran’s protests remains hotly contested amid internet blackouts and state intimidation. Estimates range from the thousands confirmed dead to the tens of thousands feared killed, according to activists, media reports and medical data.

Fatemeh Jamalpour, an Iranian journalist who has covered every major protest movement over the past two decades, said the latest crackdown represents a turning point in the regime’s use of force. ‘The regime’s level of violence has increased dramatically, and with the internet crackdown, it is difficult to know the true scale of the killing.’

‘The new thing I have seen in these protests, something we have not seen before, is that starting on the night of January 8, the regime issued shoot-to-kill orders to the IRGC, the Basij and the riot police, authorizing direct fire,’ Jamalpour told Fox News Digital.

‘In previous protests, military-grade weapons were used mainly in minority provinces such as Kurdistan and Baluchestan,’ she added. ‘This time they were used across the entire country… Health Ministry officials told us they ran out-of-body bags for the dead.’

The most widely cited baseline comes from the Human Rights Activists News Agency, or HRANA, a U.S.-based group that tracks deaths by name and location.

As of January 25, HRANA reported 5,848 people confirmed killed. Of these, 5,520 were protesters, 77 were children under 18, 209 were government-affiliated forces and 42 were non-protesters or civilians. The number of deaths still under investigation stands at 17,091.

The group has emphasized that its confirmed tally reflects only cases that could be independently documented, and that its overall figures are expected to rise as information continues to emerge.

According to The Associated Press, Iranian authorities have offered only one official count, 3,117, and have not updated it publicly in the last five days. Authorities have not released names, locations, or documentation to support that figure.

Beyond human rights tallies, a separate medical working paper reviewed by Fox News Digital suggests the death toll may be far higher.

The report by Munich Med Group, authored by professor Dr. Amir-Mobarez Parasta, compiles hospital-registered fatalities from multiple Iranian cities and applies what the author describes as a conservative extrapolation model to account for underreporting during the communications blackout.

Using that methodology, the paper estimates a nationwide death toll of approximately 33,130 people as of January 23. The author stresses the figure is not a verified count, but a lower-bound estimate based on partial medical data and stated assumptions.

Iran International published its own investigation, claiming it reviewed documents indicating that more than 36,500 people were killed during two days of protests on January 8 and 9 alone. The outlet said the documents were provided by sources inside Iran, but the claims have not been independently verified.

The wide gap between confirmed counts and higher estimates reflects not only the scale of violence, but also the conditions under which it occurred.

According to Jamalpour, despite the internet shutdown, doctors and medical workers attempted to document what they were seeing using limited satellite connections.

‘Many doctors and medical staff tried to send us their accounts and documentation through small Starlink connections,’ she said. ‘Medical workers say protesters were often shot in the head and neck, with intent to kill. Many were killed by multiple bullets. Some were shot from behind while trying to flee.’

Jamalpour said the victims she documented reflected a generation the regime appeared determined to crush. ‘Among the dead are children and a 67-year-old man, but most are young people under 30,’ she said. 

Jamalpour described the killing of Mehdi Khanmohammadi, a 67-year-old retired army colonel and pilot. ‘He was killed on Friday, January 9, in Saadat Abad by two bullets,’ she said. ‘In a video, his daughter stands over his lifeless body and says, ‘Can you open your eyes and wake up?’’

She said scenes like that have left the country in collective mourning. ‘These days, Iranians are in shock,’ Jamalpour said. ‘There is grief everywhere.’

At the same time, she warned that the crackdown is far from over. ‘Lawyers and human rights organizations are deeply concerned about more than 20,000 protesters who have been detained and are at risk of execution,’ she said.

Yet even amid the fear, Jamalpour said she hears something new inside Iran. ‘In my conversations from inside the country, I hear people’s hope for Trump’s help in freeing Iran,’ she said. ‘And a determination to change the regime, now intertwined with anger and grief.’

President Donald Trump said Iran appears to be looking to negotiate with the U.S. amid a growing military buildup in the Middle East.

In a Monday interview with Axios, Trump suggested that Tehran had reached out on ‘numerous occasions’ and ‘want[s] to make a deal.’

‘They want to make a deal. I know so. They called on numerous occasions. They want to talk,’ the president told the outlet.

According to U.S. officials, also cited by Axios, any potential agreement would need Tehran to remove all enriched uranium, cap its long-range missile stockpile, a change in support for regional proxy forces, and cease independent uranium enrichment, terms Iranian leaders have not agreed to.

Trump also described the situation with Iran as ‘in flux,’ and pointed to the arrival of what he called ‘a big armada next to Iran. Bigger than Venezuela,’ referencing the recent deployment of U.S. naval assets.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier entered CENTCOM waters in the Indian Ocean on Monday amid increasing threats from Iran, a senior U.S. official said.

Trump had told reporters Jan. 21, ‘We have a big flotilla going in that direction, and we’ll see what happens. We have a big force going towards Iran. I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely.’

The U.S. military buildup comes amid widespread unrest inside Iran following protests that began Dec. 28.

According to a recent report from Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), the confirmed death toll from the protests has reached 5,848, with an additional 17,091 deaths under investigation.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been sheltering in a fortified underground facility, according to Iran International.

Trump is expected to hold further consultations this week, Axios said, before adding that White House officials said an attack is still on the table.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

A top Senate Republican is demanding that the heads of several immigration-focused units at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) testify publicly before the Senate. 

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., called on the heads of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigrations Services (USCIS) to come before his panel, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, next month. 

In three separate letters to acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott and USCIS Director Joseph Edlow, Paul noted that DHS had received ‘an exceptional amount of funding to secure our borders and enforce our immigration laws.’

‘Congress has an obligation to conduct oversight of those tax dollars and ensure the funding is used to accomplish the mission, provide proper support for our law enforcement, and, most importantly, protect the American people,’ Paul wrote.

‘I write to request your testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs at an open hearing by February 12, 2026,’ he continued. ‘Please provide your availability to appear before the Committee by the close of business on January 28, 2026.’

Paul’s request comes on the heels of the second fatal shooting involving a border patrol agent and U.S. citizen in the last month since the Trump administration ordered DHS to enter Minnesota. 

Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good were both fatally shot by border patrol agents, which has prompted pushback from Senate Democrats and some Republicans on the Trump administration’s activity in the state. 

But Paul’s request is more focused on the funding element of the situation.

Senate Democrats are gearing up to block the upcoming DHS funding bill, which could thrust the government into another shutdown. And Paul wants to know how the billion already allocated to the agency, likely through President Donald Trump’s ‘one, big beautiful bill,’ are being used. 

Paul’s request also comes as DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee in early March after several months of not responding to a pair of requests from Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.

Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota accused President Donald Trump of ‘deflecting’ after he took aim at her in a Truth Social post on Monday.

In part of his post, Trump said, ‘the DOJ and Congress are looking at ‘Congresswoman’ Illhan Omar, who left Somalia with NOTHING, and is now reportedly worth more than 44 Million Dollars. Time will tell all.’

The left-wing lawmaker fired back in a post on X.

‘Sorry, Trump, your support is collapsing and you’re panicking. Right on cue, you’re deflecting from your failures with lies and conspiracy theories about me. Years of ‘investigations’ have found nothing. Get your goons out of Minnesota,’ she wrote.

Before mentioning Omar in the Monday Truth Social post, Trump had also noted, ‘I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight. He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me. Separately, a major investigation is going on with respect to the massive 20 Billion Dollar, Plus, Welfare Fraud that has taken place in Minnesota, and is at least partially responsible for the violent organized protests going on in the streets.’

Omar advocates abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

‘ICE is beyond reform. Abolish it,’ she declared in part of a Sunday post on X.

In a January 18 Truth Social post, Trump said that Omar should either be jailed or sent back to Somalia.

‘There is 19 Billion Dollars in Minnesota Somalia Fraud. Fake ‘Congresswoman’ Illhan Omar, a constant complainer who hates the USA, knows everything there is to know. She should be in jail, or even a worse punishment, sent back to Somalia, considered one of the absolutely worst countries in the World. She could help to MAKE SOMALIA GREAT AGAIN!’ the president declared in the post.

Omar, who has served in the House of Representatives since early 2019, was born in Somalia and became a U.S. citizen in 2000.

President Donald Trump said Sunday that it was ‘too late’ to halt construction of a new ballroom at the White House, despite a newly filed lawsuit challenging the project.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump described the ballroom as ‘a GIFT (ZERO taxpayer funding) to the United States of America,’ estimating its cost at $300 million and saying it was financed through private donations.

Trump said the lawsuit was brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, criticizing the group for filing it after construction was already underway.

‘Why didn’t these obstructionists and troublemakers bring their baseless lawsuit much earlier?’ he wrote.

Trump added that the East Wing was ‘changed, built and rebuilt over the years’ and that ‘it bore no resemblance or relationship to the original building.’

On July 31, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the planned construction of a 90,000-square-foot ballroom. The sprawling ballroom will accommodate approximately 650 seated guests and will stay true to the classical design of the White House.

The White House does not have a formal ballroom, and the new ballroom will take the place of the current East Wing of the White House. 

Since his return to office, Trump has wasted no time in reshaping the look and feel of the White House and the National Mall.

Trump has previously unveiled a new monument dubbed the ‘Arc de Trump,’ which is planned to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary next year.

He said the large arch, a near twin of Paris’s iconic Arc de Triomphe, will welcome visitors crossing the Arlington Memorial Bridge from Arlington National Cemetery into the heart of the nation’s capital.

Trump’s taste for opulence is unmistakable in the Oval Office, where golden accents now decorate the nation’s most iconic workspace, a reflection of his personal style.

Since then, Trump has added gold accents throughout the Oval Office to include decorative details along the ceiling and around the doorway trim. Even the cherubs inside the door frames were given a gilded makeover.

Outside the Oval Office, the Trump administration unveiled the ‘Presidential Walk of Fame,’ a series of portraits of past presidents now displayed along the West Wing colonnade.

The portrait of former President Joe Biden features his signature, created with an autopen, a machine that holds a pen and reproduces a person’s handwriting through programmed movements. The Trump administration has also installed several large mirrors in gold frames along the walkway.

Trump also said he renovated the Lincoln bathroom in the White House because it did not reflect the style of President Abraham Lincoln’s era. 

‘I renovated the Lincoln Bathroom in the White House. It was renovated in the 1940s in an art-deco green tile style, which was totally inappropriate for the Lincoln Era,’ Trump wrote in an Oct. 31 Truth Social post.

One of the key negotiators who helped end the last government shutdown won’t support a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill, further adding to the likelihood of another closure. 

Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, told CBS’ Face the Nation on Sunday that he could not support the current, six-bill funding package as is because it included the DHS funding bill. King was a pivotal figure in ending the last shutdown, and was one of only eight Senate Democratic caucus members to join Republicans to end it. 

King, like other members of the Senate Democratic caucus, is infuriated by the death of Alex Pretti, the 37-year-old nurse who was shot dead by a border patrol agent in Minneapolis on Saturday. 

Congressional Democrats have railed against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents entering Minnesota and elsewhere, but begrudgingly agreed to support the DHS bill until the chaos over the weekend unfolded.

‘I hate shutdowns,’ King said. ‘I’m one of the people that helped negotiate the solution to the last — the end of the last shutdown, but I can’t vote for a bill that includes ICE funding under the circumstances.’ 

King’s resistance to the package comes after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announced that Senate Democrats would not support the legislation, increasing the odds of a partial government shutdown by the end of the week. 

It also comes on the heels of ICE entering King’s home state of Maine for operation Catch of the Day, where Democratic Gov. Janet Mills is running to beat Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in a pivotal Senate race that could determine the balance of power in the upper chamber.  

King argued that there was an ‘easy way out’ of the funding snafu — Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., could separate out the DHS funding bill and let lawmakers vote on the remaining five bills.

However, should that happen, the House would still have to weigh in. The lower chamber won’t return to Washington, D.C., until next month, all but ensuring a partial government shutdown by Friday unless lawmakers can reach a compromise agreement. 

‘Let’s have an honest negotiation,’ King said. ‘Put some guardrails on what’s going on, some accountability, and that would solve this problem. We don’t have to have a shutdown.’

President Donald Trump praised the soldiers of the United Kingdom who served alongside the U.S. in Afghanistan on Saturday, clarifying his previous criticism of NATO allies.

Trump had earlier criticized NATO troops who served in Afghanistan, arguing they had stayed ‘a little bit back’ from the frontlines during the conflict. His statement was met with outrage in the U.K., however, where Prime Minister Kier Starmer called it ‘insulting and frankly, appalling.’

‘The GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers of the United Kingdom will always be with the United States of America! In Afghanistan, 457 died, many were badly injured, and they were among the greatest of all warriors,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social.

‘It’s a bond too strong to ever be broken. The U.K. Military, with tremendous Heart and Soul, is second to none (except for the U.S.A.!). We love you all, and always will!’ he continued.

The social media post partially walks back his previous criticism of NATO, made during an interview on Fox Business.

‘We have never really asked anything of them,’ he said. You know, they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan or this or that, and they did. They stayed a little back, little off the front lines.’

Starmer’s office says the prime minister raised the issue with Trump during a phone call this weekend.

‘The Prime Minister raised the brave and heroic British and American soldiers who fought side by side in Afghanistan, many of whom never returned home,’ a spokesperson said. ‘We must never forget their sacrifice.’

Trump’s initial remarks also drew a direct rebuke from Prince Harry, who served two tours in Afghanistan.

‘I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there,’ Harry said.

‘Those sacrifices deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect, as we all remain united and loyal to the defense of diplomacy and peace,’ he added.

The World Health Organization on Saturday warned that America’s withdrawal from the agency will make the country and the world ‘less safe.’

The globalist body said in part of a January 24 statement that it ‘regrets the United States’ notification of withdrawal from WHO – a decision that makes both the United States and the world less safe.’ 

‘We hope that in the future, the United States will return to active participation in WHO,’ the statement noted.

The U.S. announced its withdrawal from the WHO last week, after President Donald Trump got the ball rolling on his first day back in office last year.

‘Today, the United States withdrew from the World Health Organization (WHO), freeing itself from its constraints, as President Trump promised on his first day in office by signing E.O. 14155,’ U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in part of a January 22, 2026, joint statement.

‘Going forward, U.S. engagement with the WHO will be limited strictly to effectuate our withdrawal and to safeguard the health and safety of the American people. All U.S. funding for, and staffing of, WHO initiatives has ceased,’ their statement said.

They claimed the WHO ‘pursued a politicized, bureaucratic agenda driven by nations hostile to American interests.’ But the WHO pushed back.

‘This is untrue. As a specialized agency of the United Nations, governed by 194 Member States, WHO has always been and remains impartial and exists to serve all countries, with respect for their sovereignty, and without fear or favor,’ the WHO said in its statement.