Admiral Samuel Paparo revealed during a House Committee hearing today that the U.S. military is running a Bitcoin node and already conducting experimental tests on the network. This notably comes amid the U.S. plans to establish a Strategic BTC Reserve as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s vision to make America the crypto capital of the world.
U.S. Military Running Bitcoin Node For National Security
During a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee, Admiral Paparo said they have a node on the Bitcoin network, but are not using it to mine BTC. Instead, he noted that they are using it to monitor and conduct a number of operational tests to protect networks that use the Bitcoin protocol.
His revelation comes amid the U.S. plans to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve as America looks to lead China in this regard. When questioned about whether the U.S. gains a strategic advantage by holding more BTC than China, Admiral Paparo noted that the military’s interest in BTC is as a cryptographic tool and that they are using proof-of-work (PoW) as an additional tool to secure networks.
However, he opined that the Bitcoin protocol is “here to stay” and that Bitcoin, as a computer science tool, has direct implications for the projection of power rather than from a financial standpoint. Paparo reiterated that the interest in Bitcoin is driven by national security concerns and by how they could use the protocol to secure networks.
The Admiral also commented that he believes Bitcoin could strengthen the dollar’s dominance. At the same time, he pointed to the GENIUS Act, which he believes is a step in the right direction toward ensuring that the U.S. leads in digital assets.
BTC Is Helpful For “Deterrence”
Commenting on Admiral Paparo’s testimony, Dennis Porter, CEO of Satoshi Action Fund, noted that Paparo was clearly saying that BTC is helpful for deterrence and could be a tool for defense in cyberspace. Porter noted that this doesn’t mean that the military officer is opposed to BTC as a monetary tool.
“In fact, access to Bitcoin’s use case as a cyber deterrence tool likely rests on our ability to hold Bitcoin (the money) so we can access and use the tool effectively,” he said. Porter added that there is a need to hold BTC in order to securely access the network as a cyber deterrence tool.
The crypto policy advocate then alluded to the ‘Mined in America’ Act, noting that this is why domestic manufacturing of Bitcoin mining hardware is important. He explained that secure access to hashrate means that America needs secure access to hardware.
Porter further remarked that the U.S. cannot win the Bitcoin race and the hash race if all the country’s mining equipment is coming from China. He claimed that China is the main reason they need deterrence in cyberspace in the first place.