Blockchain technology is being pitched as a tool to advance U.S. national security, with Dr. Mark T. Esper arguing that the Pentagon should use it to secure classified data, track weapons and munitions, and tighten control over military information. In his opinion piece, Esper said the Trump administration’s embrace of cryptocurrency has been disruptive and auspicious, while the Biden era brought a heavy-handed regulatory approach toward the industry. He said the country has now seen a complete reversal and is leading the world in the technology.
Who Gets the Power
Esper said bipartisan legislation like the GENIUS Act on payment stablecoins has helped set the stage, and he argued that Congress should finish the job by passing the CLARITY Act to establish market structure rules for digital assets. He said those frameworks would ensure U.S. preeminence in global capital markets and open the door wider for progress in the national security space. In his telling, commercial blockchain leadership creates the talent, infrastructure and standards the Pentagon can leverage.
Esper said more than 55 million Americans currently own crypto and described it as a secure, easy and reliable way to move money globally. He also said blockchain provides a transparent ledger for something of value beyond currency, such as a copyright, a professional license or a sensitive email, and that it allows people to share such things privately with confidence, ease and accountability.
What the Apparatus Wants
The military use case is where the hierarchy gets more explicit. Esper said the maturation of zero-knowledge proofs and better key management are two reasons for the military to pick up the ball again in the defense space. He said the Pentagon should pursue a layered strategy: permissioned systems for classified and sensitive data, and public blockchains for applications where external verifiability and interoperability are the point.
According to Esper, permissioned systems could be used for tamper-evident command-and-control logs, classified communications and secure conveyance of crisis information such as battle plans, unit readiness reports and bomb damage assessments. He said public blockchains could be used for anchoring document hashes for tamper-evident integrity, content authentication and counter-deepfake provenance for official communications and imagery, coalition interoperability with allies on shared neutral infrastructure, and zero-knowledge proofs could let DOD prove facts about sensitive data without exposing the data itself.
Esper said the Pentagon could also use blockchain’s secure ledger technology to safeguard and reliably transfer equipment, weapons and munitions stocks, financial data, maintenance logs and contracts. He said blockchain could enhance supply chain monitoring from the origin of items through deployment and the bill of materials, and cited a 2020 PwC report saying manufacturers can use blockchain to improve tracking parts, anticipate repairs and make maintenance more efficient.
Corporate Models, Military Dreams
Esper pointed to Walmart as an example, saying it has used blockchain for years in supply chain management. He also said JP Morgan uses a bank-led blockchain platform called Kinexys for programmable payments, asset tokenization and near-real-time settlement across global markets. Those examples were presented as proof that the technology is already being folded into corporate and financial systems built to move goods, money and control more efficiently.
Esper said China is aggressively moving forward on multiple fronts and that Beijing’s actions suggest the Communist Party sees blockchain as core infrastructure for both economic statecraft and military modernization. He said the Pentagon could also put sensitive personal documents such as military service files, medical records and birth certificates on a secure blockchain, and noted that California and other states are doing this.
Esper said the use of blockchain by the department is limited only by the institution’s eagerness and imagination and the resources required to make it real. He said solid next steps might begin with establishing a blockchain working group, drafting a strategy document and starting a Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office-led pilot program. The proposal leaves the machinery of state power intact while asking it to become more efficient, more networked and more deeply embedded in the digital systems it already controls.