Trump says monumental arch in Washington, DC will also be military complex

A planned “triumphal arch” near some of the most iconic landmarks in Washington, DC, will also be a military complex used to store drones and other military equipment, according to United States President Donald Trump.

The changes were made at the request of the military and for “National Security purposes,” Trump posted on his social media platform on Sunday.

The project would now be used to “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,” Trump said. “There will be no facility like this anywhere in the World.”

Trump first proposed building a monumental arch last year to mark 250 years of US independence, saying it would be akin to other famed arches like the Arc de Triomphe built in Paris after World War Two, but “the biggest one of all”.

On Sunday, the US president did not provide details on the new design, which was previously planned to be a lofty 76-metre-high (250-foot) arch that would tower above many other landmarks in the capital. By law, the height of new construction in the city is generally restricted.

Trump’s arch project has faced criticism ever since then for its size and location, and for potentially obscuring views of the Arlington National Cemetery, the country’s famed resting place for war veterans.

In February, three veterans of the Vietnam War filed a lawsuit against the plan, saying it would block the view between the cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial, erected to honour the US president who oversaw the Civil War. The view from the monument, the veterans said in a court filing, was “carefully designed to symbolise the unification of the country after the Civil War and the strength of a united nation”. Any major monument around the capital, the lawsuit also argued, would need approval from the US Congress. A judge ordered the Trump administration to provide notice of any work on the monument, but courts have not ruled on the larger challenge yet.

The Trump-appointed US Commission of Fine Arts, a key agency involved in the project, approved a design in April that featured statues of golden lions at the base of the arch, and golden eagles and a winged angel atop a baroque arch resembling the one in Paris.

The Federal Aviation Administration said last week the arch would not be a hazard to the nearby Reagan Washington National Airport, but would need a warning beacon on top.

The monumental arch is one of several Trump projects in the capital to receive public pushback.

On Saturday, thousands rallied, and some protesters formed a human chain around the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the landmark along the Potomac River waterfront built to honour the 35th US President John F Kennedy. Trump has threatened to demolish the venue if he is not allowed to add his name to it, saying that is the only way to ensure it gets enough funding to survive.

Trump is also overseeing a $400m controversial project at the White House, where the East Wing of the complex was demolished to make way for an 8,400sq m (90,000sq ft) ballroom with an impenetrable underground bunker. Historic preservation groups filed a lawsuit to stop that project, but last month the US Supreme Court allowed construction to continue .

Like the triumphal arch, Trump has also justified the need for the new ballroom on national security grounds and has referred to it as a “military complex”.