Trump triumphal arch to become "top grade military complex" for launching drones
US president Donald Trump has announced that the planned 250-foot-high triumphal arch in Washington DC, designed by Atlanta-based Harrison Design, will now be a military base with drones and snipers.
According to Trump, who announced the plan in a Truth Social post yesterday, the change in the design was made at the request of the US military.
"At the strong request of the United States military, and for national security purposes, I have agreed to convert the magnificent triumphal arch... into a top grade military complex/triumphal arch," he said.
Set to be built alongside the Arlington Memorial Bridge on the south bank of the Potomac River, the neoclassical arch is planned to be 250 feet high (76 metres) – nearly 100 feet (30 metres) higher than the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
Plans for the arch were first revealed last October, with US interior secretary Doug Burgum announcing that construct was about to begin earlier this month.
The plans gained approval from the Commission of Fine Arts in May and the National Capital Planning Commission in July.
According to Trump, the arch will now be used for the storage and deployment of "large numbers of drones", as well as a base for sniper units with "large quantities" of ammunition.
"[It will] house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus snipers, on both the roof and plaza areas, and additionally have and hold large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage," he said.
Previously, the arch was planned as a tourist attraction topped with a publicly accessible viewpoint. Plans of the arch showed its interior spaces housing facilities for visitors, including galleries for exhibitions.
It is unclear how these spaces will be impacted by the plans to use the structure for military purposes, or how the plans will impact the arch's planning approvals.
Trump's decision to tie the construction of the monument to national security follows a similar move at the White House, where a ballroom is being built onto an extensive, underground military complex.
Recently, the US Supreme Court ruled that construction can continue on the ballroom despite numerous attempts to halt progress on the building.
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