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The U.S. Department of Defense Incorporates Bitcoin into National Security Issues

From April 21 to April 23, 2026, Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and a four-star admiral, confirmed at hearings of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees:

1. Operate Bitcoin nodes: The U.S. military is running full nodes on the Bitcoin network, but it explicitly states that it is “not participating in mining,” and that it is used only for network monitoring, operational testing, and cybersecurity research.

‌2. Strategic redefinition: Paparo strips Bitcoin of its financial attributes, positioning it as a “computer science tool” and a “means of projecting national power,” emphasizing that its underlying technology (peer-to-peer transmission, the proof-of-work mechanism) can strengthen the security of military communications and increase the defensive cost of cyberattacks.

‌3. Geopolitical objectives: Bitcoin is incorporated into the U.S. military’s “Indo-Pacific strategy” technology competition system, directly serving technological deterrence against China, and at the same time consolidating U.S. dollar hegemony by coordinating compliance and stabilizing the stablecoin ecosystem.

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I. Technological Applications and Military Intentions

The U.S. military plans to strengthen the use of Bitcoin in the following three areas

‌1. Network situational awareness: By using full nodes to track the global movement of crypto assets in real time, monitoring terrorist financing and potential threats.

‌2. Attack-and-defense technology testing: Using the Bitcoin protocol to test the resilience of military networks to attacks, and researching the application of the proof-of-work mechanism in cyber warfare.

‌3. Dominance in technology standards: With military involvement to seize control of the rule-setting power for blockchain technology, preventing strategic competitors (such as China) from making technological breakthroughs.

II. Strategic Impact

1. Recasting Bitcoin’s identity: Transforming from a “decentralized financial asset” into a “national-level security infrastructure” and a “tool of great-power games,” and for the first time being included in the power-operations framework by the world’s strongest military force. This is undoubtedly a further long-term positive for Bitcoin—Bitcoin returns to public view, and countries may follow suit by increasing their strategic Bitcoin reserves.

‌2. Global regulation shifts: Many countries may adjust their regulatory logic, from “risk control” to “control of strategic technological resources.”

‌3. Escalation of U.S.-China competition: Bitcoin becomes a new dimension in U.S.-China technology and military competition, with its role especially highlighted in the struggle for technological hegemony in the Indo-Pacific region.