Russia on Friday condemned an executive order by U.S. President Donald Trump to build a new missile defence shield, accusing the United States of trying to upset the global nuclear balance and pave the wave for military confrontation in space.

The statement came days after Trump signed an order that ”mandated a process to develop an ‘American Iron Dome,’” a next-generation U.S. missile defence shield against ballistic, hypersonic, cruise missile and other forms of aerial attack.

For decades, the idea of a nationwide missile defense system has captured the imagination of American leaders. During the Cold War, President Ronald Reagan introduced the Strategic Defense Initiative,