Brig. Gen. Jacob Middleton, Commander of U.S. Space Forces in Europe and Africa, right, is interviewed by Tina Ghataore at the Space Defense & Security Summit in Paris on Sept. 17, hosted by Novaspace. Photo: Via Satellite

PARIS — Acquiring resilient satellite communications lies at the heart of the U.S. Space Force’s commercial space strategy, but according to Brig. Gen. Jacob Middleton, Commander of U.S. Space Forces in Europe and Africa, the five-year-old branch of the Pentagon is still looking for a better way to secure connectivity.

“Unfortunately, there’s no such thing as U.S. Internet Command,” Brig. Gen. Middleton said during a fireside chat at the World Space Business Week event in Paris. “We could use a better commercial milsatcom strategy, especially to meet our future requirements … We’re nascent in space in a lot of ways.”

Brig. Gen. Middleton expects the military’s efforts in engaging with a diversified set of satellite communications providers to significantly increase during the next year. When asked if Space Force would also engage with a diversified set of commercial launch services, particularly those in Europe and abroad, Brig. Gen. Middleton said the Pentagon was open to considering all opportunities.

“At the end of the day, we need to lower the cost-per-pound for launching satellites and we need flexibility and availability,” he said. “Any launch service that can lower our costs and meet our requirements will be considered.”

Space Force is soliciting launch services under its Orbital Services Program (OSP)-4 contract program. So far, it has made 12 companies eligible for awards: Blue Origin, Stoke Space Technologies, Northrop Grumman, the former Virgin Orbit National Systems, Firefly Aerospace, Rocket Lab, ABL Space Systems, Aevum, Relativity Space, SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, Astra, and X-Bow Systems.

Another key requirement under the U.S. Space Force’s commercial space strategy is space situational awareness (SSA). Echoing sentiments delivered by his international peers who also spoke in Paris, Brig. Gen. Middleton said that the U.S. Department of Defense has prioritized strengthening its information and resource sharing network with allied nations in order to keep space a safe and open place for global economic development – a message that resonates with good timing just before a national U.S. election that some describe as a “catalyst” for international military relationships.

“We need to develop new frameworks that build on the historic information sharing network we established with our allies in World War II,” said Brig. Gen. Middleton. “Obviously, we’re hearing more from bad actors who aren’t afraid to cause trouble in space. That’s why understanding what is going on in orbit is important, and why we need to be able to sync up across the domains so we’re all communicating on the same page. We definitely need a common shared asset. We would absolutely prefer peaceful methods of engagement with bad actors, but we have to be ready to protect ourselves, our allies, and our partners in space.”