The general chosen by former US president Donald Trump to establish the United States Space Force says his nation would be very willing to help Australia do the same.
US Chief of Space Operations General John Raymond is visiting Australia to hold talks with Defence officials on closer cooperation, as concerns grow over the activities of China and Russia far above Earth.
"I'm very comfortable that we're the best in the world in space, I'm very comfortable that we can protect and defend our capabilities today," General Raymond said on the sidelines of the Air and Space Conference in Canberra.
"The reason why we established a Space Force and the reason why these partnerships are so important to us is we want to move fast; we want to stay ahead of those threats."
Established in 2019, the US Space Force now boasts around 7,000 uniformed personnel, known as "guardians", and another 7,000 civilians.
This week, Australia's Defence Space Command formally began operating, with Defence Minister Peter Dutton flagging that it would eventually become a fully-fledged Space Force, similar to the United States, where it is a standalone military service.
Australia and the United States have identified Russia and China as the main threats in space, with both nations demonstrating their ability to destroy satellites in recent years.
"We don't think it's safe and professional for China to use their DN-1 weapons system and blow up a satellite or Russia to do the same thing," General Raymond warned.
"We don't think it's safe and professional for countries to put capabilities that are concerning in close proximity to other countries' satellites in the domain."
General Raymond said the United States would be "absolutely" happy to help Australia also take a further leap into the emerging military domain.
He said the main focus for America and its partners was on resilience and a pivot away from current cutting-edge satellites that were built for "a different domain".
"We want to be partners in any way we can be helpful, as we've been in the past, and as Australia is to us, we want to be helpful," he said.
Space law expert Steven Freeland, who is this week travelling to Vienna to co-chair United Nations working groups on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, believes establishing a strong global consensus on how nations should operate in space is essential.
"Nobody wins in a space war, and everybody loses," he said.
"And I think that's a powerful message that no doubt people understand but don't necessarily espouse publicly given the geopolitical times."
