An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Nov. 15, 2021

Guard partnership program adapts, continues to grow

By xxxxxJim Garamone, DOD News

WASHINGTON – A National Guard program formed in the wake of the fall of the Soviet Union has adapted and continues to provide benefits to partnerships around the world, Army Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, the chief of the National Guard Bureau, said at a Defense Writers' Group breakfast in Washington.

The State Partnership Program matches state National Guards with nations. It started to help countries newly freed from Soviet domination learn how the military operates in a democracy. The program also taught nations how to build the capabilities to qualify for NATO membership.

Beginning with 13 partnerships in 1993, the program now has 82 partnerships encompassing 89 nations. They span the range from Poland to Papua-New Guinea, Vietnam to Uruguay and Indonesia to Nigeria. The National Guards in all 54 states and territories and the District of Columbia participate in the program. 

These are long-term commitments. "I was in Croatia over the weekend, and Minnesota has had a partnership [for] 25 years with Croatia," the general said. Hokanson met with the Croatian president, defense minister and the chief of defense. He said they each told him how valuable their partnership with Minnesota is. 

Croatia became a NATO member in 2009, and yet the partnership with the National Guard continues. Croatian soldiers deployed with Minnesota Guardsmen to Afghanistan. 

"When I was the adjutant general for Oregon, we had partnerships with Bangladesh and Vietnam, and it was really, it benefited both of us significantly," he said. "On one end, we will work with the countries to determine what they wanted to work on. In the case of Vietnam, they wanted to help set up an emergency management center and wanted to know how we did that."

The Oregon Guardsmen helped them design the center and coached them on operational procedures. 

Hokanson said this isn't a one-way arrangement. When Vietnam had to deal with flooding along the Mekong River, National Guardsmen learned how the Vietnamese handled the crisis. "When we sent our Soldiers and Airmen over there, they develop those relationships, and, for the folks in Vietnam, they get to learn a lot of things that we had learned," Hokanson said. "For our Soldiers and Airmen, they get a more global perspective of what was going on and their role in it." 

The nations exercise together and service members from privates and Airmen to generals get hands-on experience. The National Guard has an added benefit in that the personnel in the Guard may stay in place for 10 to 20 years, the general said. They develop personal relationships with their counterparts in partner nations. 

This amounts to another avenue of communication for the partner nations. If there is a disaster or incident in a country, they may feel more comfortable calling the partnership contact. "That sort of thing happens, actually quite a bit," he said. 

The Oregon Guard helped develop the Cascadia Earthquake Plan along a "megathrust" fault. "We openly share all that documentation with [Bangladesh]," the general said. "Because at the end of the day, just like us, they're trying to really take care of their communities and their nations and respond to things to really mitigate … human suffering."

The program costs roughly $30 million per year and continues to grow. 

"We do this at a very, very low cost, and we are trying to get more consistent funding because it goes [from] fiscal year to fiscal year, but it is probably one of the best values our nation gets when it comes to developing long-term relationships," he said. 

The program works closely with the State Department and with the combatant commands. It is an entry for the United States in many of these areas. Hokanson noted that the majority of military personnel who go into Africa and South America are from the National Guard because of the extensive partnerships.

The program also is growing in the Indo-Pacific region and is very strong with the nations on the periphery of Russia. 

The program continues to grow, and, in an era of strategic competition, it's an excellent way to build and nourish partnerships, the general said. The nations set the goals, and the National Guardsmen work with the nations to achieve them. Their goals include making strides in disaster response, officer and noncommissioned officer development, aviation operations and maintenance, cyber defense, infantry tactics, engineer activities and military medicine. 

Once a nation reaches its goals in an area, the leaders sit down and discuss what further steps are needed. 

"It's a process," Hokanson said. "A process among friends."
 

 

 

Related Articles
Four Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers conduct a close-quarters battle exchange with members of the Tajik military April 7 - 11, 2025, in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The engagement was conducted in support of the Department of Defense’s State Partnership Program, which has connected Virginia and Tajikistan since 2003.
Virginia Army Guard Soldiers, Tajikistan Conduct Battle Exchange Training
By Mike Vrabel, | April 23, 2025
DUSHANBE, Tajikistan  –  Four Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers recently conducted a close-quarters battle exchange training with members of the Tajik military.  The engagement was conducted April 7-11 through the...

United States Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael Bank, the commander of the New York Air National Guard and Swedish air force Maj. Gen. Jonas Wikman, chief of the Swedish air force, pose for a photo during a visit to Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, NY, Apr. 7. During the visit, which was part of a state partnership program engagement, Wikman also toured the Eastern Air Defense Sector and an Air Force Research Laboratory facility in Rome, NY.
New York Guard Hosts Swedish Air Force Leader
By Alexander Rector, | April 17, 2025
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The head of the Swedish air force got a first hand look at New York Air National Guard MQ-9 Reaper operations during his recent visit to Hancock Field Air National Guard Base. Maj. Gen. Jonas Wikman of the...

Swedish Army Corporal Simon Drie Runnander, receives an award from New York Army National Guard Command Sgt. Major Edwin Garris, to mark his participation in the New York National Guard Best Warrior Competition, during a dinner at the United States Military Academy at West Point on April 10, 2025. Drie Runnander and Pvt. Jasper Petersson, took part in the annual Best Warrior event as part of the New York National Guard State Partnership Program.
Swedish Soldiers Compete in NY Guard Competition
By Staff Sgt. Richard Trinh and Eric Durr, | April 15, 2025
CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. — Two soldiers from the Swedish Armed Forces competed with New York Army National Guard troops during the 2025 Best Warrior Competition last week. Swedish Cpl. Simon Drie Runnander and Pvt...