The US national security Council views DLT as a critical weapon in the US-China tech war

The US national security Council has named distributed Ledger technology (DLT) as one of the most important areas in America’s struggle to maintain technological superiority over China and Russia.

Global technological confrontation of superpowers

The national security Council (NSC) of the Trump administration believes that the technology that gave birth to blockchain and cryptocurrency is one of the twenty most important innovations in which the United States should remain a leader in the technological cold war between the United States and China.

As published on Thursday in a national security Council report titled “national strategy for critical and emerging technologies,” DLT is one of twenty priority areas that require prioritizing development, implementation, and investment in order for the United States to remain a leader in global technology.

Other new and breakthrough technologies shortlisted by the NSC include AI, data science, quantum computing, weapons of mass destruction deterrence technologies, and space technologies.

The document states:

“Throughout our history, American achievements and leadership in science and technology (S&T) have been the driving force behind our way of life, prosperity, and security. However, American leadership in science and technology faces growing challenges from strategic competitors who recognize the benefits of science and technology and organize huge human and capital resources on a national scale to take a leading position in areas with long-term consequences.”

Although the document clearly defines the areas of technology that should be prioritized and explored, it does not provide a clear roadmap for achieving the strategy, nor does it provide a real understanding of the cost of implementing technologies.

Tech War Position

A recent official document from Amazon Web Services, IBM, and Deloitte, among others, highlights that the US Department of defense is lagging behind its rivals in the global military blockchain race with Russia and China.

The report warned:

“The two superpowers that pose the greatest threat to the US are investing heavily in both research and development of blockchain technology.”

The briefing highlights that China is waging an “economic war” with the Central Bank’s digital currency, or DCEP, while Russia is on the defensive with a lab dedicated to mitigating blockchain-based cyber threats.

In addition, China is rapidly moving forward in its quest for DLT and blockchain. The China block chain service network (BSN) is open for commercial use from April 2020 after six months of internal testing. BSN allows small businesses and individuals to easily manage blockchain applications without using a private blockchain network. The network also aims to reduce costs, with estimates that hosting a decentralized application (Dapp) will cost only about $ 260-390 a year.