WEBVTT 00:00.009 --> 00:02.120 Good morning . Good morning . How are 00:02.120 --> 00:03.120 you ? Yeah , 00:11.859 --> 00:13.915 good morning and welcome . Thank you 00:13.915 --> 00:16.081 all for coming today . We're here with 00:16.081 --> 00:17.970 the Director , Strategy Plans and 00:17.970 --> 00:19.915 Policy and International Affairs , 00:19.915 --> 00:21.915 Major , General William Zana and he 00:21.915 --> 00:23.859 will discuss the state partnership 00:23.859 --> 00:25.915 programs 30th anniversary conference 00:25.915 --> 00:25.790 happening here in the national capital 00:25.799 --> 00:28.799 region . 17 and 18 , July . I'm Captain 00:28.809 --> 00:30.865 John National Guard Bureau of Public 00:30.865 --> 00:33.031 Affairs and I'll be moderating today's 00:33.031 --> 00:34.976 media roundtable . We will have 30 00:34.976 --> 00:36.976 minutes today . So I'd ask that you 00:36.976 --> 00:36.799 please keep your questions focused on 00:36.810 --> 00:38.754 the topic of the state partnership 00:38.754 --> 00:40.810 program and its anniversary events . 00:40.810 --> 00:42.643 General Zana has a brief opening 00:42.643 --> 00:44.866 statement and then we'll open it up for 00:44.866 --> 00:46.921 questions and to ensure we have time 00:46.921 --> 00:49.032 for everyone to participate , we will 00:49.032 --> 00:51.088 limit everyone to one question and a 00:51.088 --> 00:50.439 follow up . And then if there's 00:50.450 --> 00:52.672 additional time at the end , we'll open 00:52.672 --> 00:54.894 it up for additional questions . I have 00:54.894 --> 00:57.117 a list of the media joining us remotely 00:57.117 --> 00:59.117 and we'll call on you by name and I 00:59.117 --> 01:01.172 know some of you in the room but not 01:01.172 --> 01:03.339 everyone . Um So if you're in the room 01:03.339 --> 01:05.506 and I call on you , please uh announce 01:05.506 --> 01:05.089 your name and your outlet before asking 01:05.099 --> 01:07.266 your question . And with that , I will 01:07.266 --> 01:09.321 turn it over to General Zana for his 01:09.321 --> 01:11.266 opening remarks . General , thanks 01:11.266 --> 01:13.266 Captain John and and good morning , 01:13.266 --> 01:13.199 ladies and gentlemen , thanks for the 01:13.209 --> 01:15.376 opportunity to talk a little bit about 01:15.376 --> 01:17.265 the 30th anniversary of the state 01:17.265 --> 01:19.320 partnership program . A program that 01:19.320 --> 01:21.376 began in 1993 with just 13 countries 01:21.376 --> 01:23.320 and has now grown to 100 countries 01:23.510 --> 01:25.677 program's growth and evolution . As we 01:25.677 --> 01:27.621 look at , this is truly just quite 01:27.621 --> 01:29.788 remarkable . Today's National Guard is 01:29.788 --> 01:32.010 a ready , capable and vital part of our 01:32.010 --> 01:33.788 national defense strategy . The 01:33.788 --> 01:35.954 importance of allies and partners is a 01:35.954 --> 01:37.899 theme that runs deeply through our 01:37.899 --> 01:39.732 national security strategy , our 01:39.732 --> 01:41.510 national defense strategy , our 01:41.510 --> 01:43.677 national military strategy and I would 01:43.677 --> 01:43.639 argue is deeply and cultured within 01:43.650 --> 01:45.817 what we do as the US military , how we 01:45.817 --> 01:48.470 operate in our values . The SPP is a 01:48.480 --> 01:50.591 program that clearly demonstrates our 01:50.591 --> 01:52.702 nation's enduring emphasis on working 01:52.702 --> 01:54.758 side by side with willing partners . 01:54.758 --> 01:56.924 The state partnership program provides 01:56.924 --> 01:58.980 an unparalleled opportunity where we 01:58.980 --> 02:01.202 the National Guard in close cooperation 02:01.202 --> 02:03.313 with both the dod Department of State 02:03.313 --> 02:05.536 and our nation and state partners build 02:05.536 --> 02:07.536 enduring and trusting relationships 02:07.536 --> 02:09.758 with partner nations around the world . 02:09.758 --> 02:11.869 The Guard is currently partnered with 02:11.869 --> 02:13.980 more than half of the world's nations 02:13.980 --> 02:16.091 and we expect to see continued growth 02:16.091 --> 02:15.529 in the coming years . We've got 02:15.539 --> 02:17.761 capacity within the Guard to be able to 02:17.761 --> 02:19.761 support additional partnerships and 02:19.761 --> 02:21.483 additional missions , training 02:21.483 --> 02:23.761 opportunities and exercises as many of , 02:23.761 --> 02:25.761 you know , the National Guard State 02:25.761 --> 02:25.729 Partnership Program will celebrate our 02:25.740 --> 02:27.910 30 years of building and growing these 02:27.919 --> 02:30.141 successful long term relationships with 02:30.141 --> 02:32.141 allies and partners in a conference 02:32.141 --> 02:34.363 scheduled for next week , July 17th and 02:34.363 --> 02:36.030 18th at the Gay Lord National 02:36.030 --> 02:38.197 Convention Center National Harbor here 02:38.197 --> 02:40.419 in Maryland . This event will host 02:40.429 --> 02:42.429 approximately 600 participants from 02:42.429 --> 02:44.429 more than 90 nations with many 02:44.440 --> 02:46.607 ministers of defense chiefs of defense 02:46.607 --> 02:48.384 ambassadors , combatant Command 02:48.384 --> 02:50.496 Commanders , State Adjutant General , 02:50.496 --> 02:52.607 senior enlisted leaders and a variety 02:52.607 --> 02:54.718 of speakers and panelists from across 02:54.718 --> 02:56.940 our whole of government , including the 02:56.940 --> 02:59.051 White House Department of Defense and 02:59.051 --> 03:00.884 Department of State . It's truly 03:00.884 --> 03:02.829 remarkable turnout for this at the 03:02.829 --> 03:04.884 conference , we will commemorate the 03:04.884 --> 03:06.884 program's many achievements . But I 03:06.884 --> 03:06.380 think more importantly , we're going to 03:06.389 --> 03:08.850 focus on sharing discussion uh to help 03:08.860 --> 03:10.693 shape the program's future , the 03:10.693 --> 03:12.804 evolution as we go forward , an event 03:12.804 --> 03:14.916 of this magnitude is unprecedented in 03:14.916 --> 03:16.971 the program's history and it's gonna 03:16.971 --> 03:19.138 provide us an opportunity to do at the 03:19.138 --> 03:19.050 highest level what the program does 03:19.059 --> 03:21.392 every day worldwide and that's to share , 03:21.392 --> 03:23.448 learn and grow with one another . We 03:23.448 --> 03:25.670 invite you to RSVP uh to one or more of 03:25.670 --> 03:27.948 the 30th anniversary conference events . 03:27.948 --> 03:29.948 The agenda is available and will be 03:29.948 --> 03:31.892 shared with you . Invited speakers 03:31.892 --> 03:34.059 include chairman of the Joint Chiefs , 03:34.059 --> 03:36.281 General Mark Milley , our J CS member , 03:36.281 --> 03:38.059 General Daniel Hokenson , Chief 03:38.059 --> 03:40.281 National Guard Bureau , many other high 03:40.281 --> 03:40.009 ranking us and foreign defense 03:40.020 --> 03:42.229 officials . We hope you will join us 03:42.240 --> 03:44.351 and thanks again for your interest uh 03:44.351 --> 03:46.462 in this vitally important program . I 03:46.462 --> 03:48.407 look forward to some questions and 03:48.407 --> 03:50.629 discussion . Thank you , General Zana . 03:50.629 --> 03:52.629 I will now open it up for questions 03:52.629 --> 03:52.470 here in the room . I will start with 03:52.479 --> 03:54.812 John with the defense scoop . Thank you . 03:54.812 --> 03:56.868 Uh Thanks for doing this General . I 03:56.868 --> 03:58.979 was wondering to what extent Cyber uh 03:58.979 --> 04:01.199 plays a role in this program ? And are 04:01.210 --> 04:03.154 you looking to expand any of those 04:03.154 --> 04:05.210 initiatives of some of these partner 04:05.210 --> 04:07.210 nations ? And John , thanks for the 04:07.210 --> 04:09.154 question on Cyber . What we see is 04:09.154 --> 04:11.321 there are a lot of um if you look over 04:11.321 --> 04:13.543 the history of the program , you see an 04:13.543 --> 04:15.543 evolution of the things that really 04:15.543 --> 04:17.377 focus on and training . Uh Cyber 04:17.377 --> 04:19.154 information operations has been 04:19.154 --> 04:21.266 something that's emergent . There's a 04:21.266 --> 04:23.377 great demand signal for uh one of the 04:23.377 --> 04:25.321 breakout sessions or one of the uh 04:25.321 --> 04:27.543 panel discussions that we've got during 04:27.543 --> 04:29.599 the event is focused specifically on 04:29.599 --> 04:31.654 Cyber . We see a great demand signal 04:31.654 --> 04:33.488 from our partners to to grow the 04:33.488 --> 04:35.710 capabilities . We face many of the same 04:35.710 --> 04:38.519 challenges both in terms of adversaries 04:38.529 --> 04:40.751 and in terms of the efforts that we put 04:40.751 --> 04:42.973 at this over the last couple of years , 04:42.973 --> 04:45.085 we've seen a tremendous growth in the 04:45.085 --> 04:47.029 number of things that we do , both 04:47.029 --> 04:49.140 exchanges , exercises and events that 04:49.140 --> 04:51.362 are either related to state partnership 04:51.362 --> 04:53.418 program or more broadly , what we do 04:53.418 --> 04:55.529 within the Guard with our partners in 04:55.529 --> 04:57.696 security cooperation . I see continued 04:57.696 --> 04:59.807 growth in that , in other areas , one 04:59.807 --> 05:02.029 of the other areas that we see a lot of 05:02.029 --> 05:04.140 discussion on and I think it's driven 05:04.140 --> 05:04.049 by what many people are seeing in the 05:04.059 --> 05:07.130 news , uh unmanned aerial systems . Uh 05:07.140 --> 05:09.980 We see uh tremendous interest in space 05:09.989 --> 05:12.156 activities and operations as well . Uh 05:12.156 --> 05:13.878 We also see growth and I think 05:13.878 --> 05:16.209 opportunities within uh areas like 05:16.220 --> 05:18.276 women , peace and security . I think 05:18.276 --> 05:20.553 there's a number of um of our partners , 05:20.553 --> 05:22.664 uh , who we have both shared with and 05:22.664 --> 05:24.609 are learning from in terms of best 05:24.609 --> 05:26.553 practices across all those areas . 05:26.553 --> 05:28.776 Thank you . I was wondering , does this 05:28.776 --> 05:30.942 program , uh , play at all into the so 05:30.942 --> 05:32.942 called Hunt forward operations that 05:32.942 --> 05:35.109 cyber comm does is , is the guard part 05:35.109 --> 05:37.331 of that ? And is it at all connected to 05:37.331 --> 05:37.010 this program or is that a totally 05:37.019 --> 05:39.352 separate thing ? Totally separate thing ? 05:39.352 --> 05:41.720 But what I would say is , uh , within 05:41.730 --> 05:43.841 the , the State Partnership program , 05:43.841 --> 05:46.209 you've got , um , it's a mill to mill 05:46.220 --> 05:48.220 relationship initially , but really 05:48.220 --> 05:50.331 that's just the opening of the door , 05:50.331 --> 05:52.553 uh , to all sorts of other activities . 05:52.553 --> 05:54.959 Um , we see that , uh , often the , the 05:54.970 --> 05:56.748 trust that's built within these 05:56.748 --> 05:58.581 relationships helps us , uh , to 05:58.581 --> 06:00.692 partner in many different ways with , 06:00.692 --> 06:02.750 with partners . Thanks . OK . We'll 06:02.760 --> 06:04.704 take our next question virtually . 06:04.704 --> 06:06.927 We'll go to Phil Stewart with Reuters . 06:08.630 --> 06:10.797 Hey there . Um , I know you're focused 06:10.797 --> 06:13.019 on the State Partnership Program . Uh , 06:13.019 --> 06:14.908 my questions are , are related to 06:14.908 --> 06:17.074 Taiwan wondering , uh , you know , how 06:17.074 --> 06:19.186 uh how , how easily uh you know , you 06:19.186 --> 06:21.186 would be able to incorporate Taiwan 06:21.186 --> 06:23.241 into the State Partnership program . 06:23.241 --> 06:25.297 What challenges uh you would face in 06:25.297 --> 06:27.408 doing so , Hawaii has been cited as a 06:27.408 --> 06:29.519 possible uh state to do that . Um And 06:29.519 --> 06:31.797 also could you bring us up to speed on , 06:31.797 --> 06:34.109 on where uh guard uh training is with 06:34.119 --> 06:36.390 the , with the Taiwanese uh right now ? 06:36.399 --> 06:38.510 And what kind of cooperation exists ? 06:38.510 --> 06:40.232 Thanks , Phil , Thanks for the 06:40.232 --> 06:42.399 questions . And what I would say first 06:42.399 --> 06:44.177 off , uh the focus for today is 06:44.177 --> 06:46.399 strictly on state partnership program . 06:46.399 --> 06:48.399 Taiwan is not . Um uh There , there 06:48.399 --> 06:50.510 have been discussions about admission 06:50.510 --> 06:52.630 there . The process that we work with 06:52.640 --> 06:54.862 uh every nation is that there has to be 06:54.862 --> 06:57.179 a request from the nation . Um This has 06:57.190 --> 06:59.301 worked closely with the Department of 06:59.301 --> 07:01.301 State Representatives . Uh It comes 07:01.301 --> 07:03.412 back to dod and there's a partnership 07:03.412 --> 07:05.634 that occurs in a dialogue at every step 07:05.634 --> 07:07.634 of the way it could be premature to 07:07.634 --> 07:09.857 talk about anything with Taiwan . Uh We 07:09.857 --> 07:12.079 have other nations that we partner with 07:12.079 --> 07:11.200 that are outside of the state 07:11.209 --> 07:13.559 partnership program uh every day . And 07:13.570 --> 07:16.209 we've got relationships that uh have 07:16.220 --> 07:18.331 more recently come into the program . 07:18.331 --> 07:20.510 An example would be uh with Norway and 07:20.519 --> 07:22.709 Minnesota , a partnership that existed 07:22.720 --> 07:24.609 not within the realm of the state 07:24.609 --> 07:26.959 partnership program , but with combined 07:26.970 --> 07:29.429 operations and exercises over 50 years 07:29.600 --> 07:32.149 and just formalized last year . Thanks 07:32.160 --> 07:34.739 Bill . Take another one virtually , we 07:34.750 --> 07:36.806 will go to Chris Gordon with Air and 07:36.806 --> 07:40.220 Space Forces magazine . Hi , thank you , 07:40.230 --> 07:43.420 sir for doing this . Um I just as you 07:43.429 --> 07:46.700 look forward for the next 30 years of 07:46.709 --> 07:49.640 uh state partnership programs , um is 07:49.649 --> 07:51.871 there gonna be an increasing role uh to 07:51.871 --> 07:55.220 train partner nation um Air 07:55.230 --> 07:58.820 Forces and uh and to allude to 07:58.829 --> 08:01.779 John's point earlier . Um Is there any 08:01.790 --> 08:05.000 uh plan to conduct some space training 08:05.010 --> 08:07.440 as well ? Um With partner nations , 08:08.380 --> 08:10.491 Chris , thanks for the question . And 08:10.491 --> 08:12.920 first to lead off about the part for 30 08:12.929 --> 08:15.151 years , one of the things we often talk 08:15.151 --> 08:17.262 about as we reach this very important 08:17.262 --> 08:19.410 milestone of 100 countries at , at 30 08:19.420 --> 08:21.531 years , there was no goal for us to , 08:21.589 --> 08:23.756 to get to that . It's just kind of how 08:23.756 --> 08:25.700 the program has evolved as we look 08:25.700 --> 08:27.922 forward . One of the things that I talk 08:27.922 --> 08:30.089 about in the future is we don't expect 08:30.089 --> 08:29.880 the next 30 years to simply be adding 08:29.890 --> 08:32.000 another 100 countries and slap the 08:32.010 --> 08:34.010 table . And we're done , we look at 08:34.010 --> 08:35.843 really the evolution of , of the 08:35.843 --> 08:38.549 relevance uh and the uh the focus areas 08:38.559 --> 08:40.989 of , of training and partnership with , 08:40.999 --> 08:43.221 with all the different nations , what I 08:43.221 --> 08:45.110 would say is uh while some of the 08:45.110 --> 08:47.549 initial um partnerships featured a lot 08:47.559 --> 08:49.781 more activity that were associated with 08:49.781 --> 08:52.068 land forces over the arc of the program 08:52.078 --> 08:53.856 in the last 30 years , we see a 08:53.856 --> 08:55.967 tremendous increase in the partnering 08:55.967 --> 08:58.169 uh across Air Force and Air Guard . Uh 08:58.179 --> 09:01.468 and I think uh we just expect that to 09:01.479 --> 09:05.099 continue uh further and this goes back 09:05.109 --> 09:07.331 to John's questions . We absolutely see 09:07.331 --> 09:09.500 a demand signal from our partners um 09:09.510 --> 09:11.566 and an opportunity to work with them 09:11.566 --> 09:13.880 much more closely on space . We see 09:13.890 --> 09:15.779 that uh at scale and at different 09:15.779 --> 09:17.890 levels , different nations are either 09:17.890 --> 09:20.112 directly involved in some of the things 09:20.112 --> 09:22.279 that um that they want to do for their 09:22.279 --> 09:24.501 own interests in terms of space or that 09:24.501 --> 09:26.446 uh other nations , in some cases , 09:26.446 --> 09:28.557 adversaries have an interest in their 09:28.557 --> 09:30.446 capabilities . Um So it's a great 09:30.446 --> 09:32.830 opportunity for us to both learn , grow 09:32.840 --> 09:34.951 and , and share with partners . And I 09:34.951 --> 09:37.007 think that access and influence is a 09:37.007 --> 09:39.062 very important part of the program . 09:39.062 --> 09:41.173 Thanks . Are there any questions here 09:41.173 --> 09:43.570 in the room , Jim ? Hi , sir . Good to 09:43.580 --> 09:45.858 see you again . Great to see you , Jim . 09:45.858 --> 09:49.700 Um You know , I , there , I haven't 09:49.710 --> 09:52.700 spoken to a combatant commander who 09:52.710 --> 09:54.510 hasn't praised the state State 09:54.520 --> 09:57.179 Partnership program to the , I mean , 09:57.190 --> 09:59.190 they , they believe it's a , it's a 09:59.190 --> 10:02.940 very good expenditure of funds . Um And 10:02.950 --> 10:05.570 they want more . Is there any way to 10:05.580 --> 10:07.802 speed up the process ? And I'm thinking 10:07.802 --> 10:10.530 specifically in these um you know , 10:10.539 --> 10:14.179 commands like Africa command or uh or 10:14.190 --> 10:16.479 in , in some of the island nations of , 10:16.489 --> 10:18.929 of the Indo Pacific command , any way 10:18.940 --> 10:20.996 to speed that process up ? Is that a 10:20.996 --> 10:24.880 problem with just uh the process or is 10:24.890 --> 10:27.001 that , is that a problem that you now 10:27.001 --> 10:29.057 are getting sort of limited with who 10:29.057 --> 10:31.549 you can add . Uh Jim , great to see you 10:31.559 --> 10:33.392 again . And , and thanks for the 10:33.392 --> 10:35.448 question . I could spend probably an 10:35.448 --> 10:37.559 hour just on this and expanding , but 10:37.559 --> 10:37.289 I'm gonna focus on a , a couple of 10:37.299 --> 10:40.640 aspects of it . Um We benefit um 10:40.650 --> 10:42.830 by the interest and the support from 10:42.840 --> 10:45.007 the combatant commanders , the service 10:45.007 --> 10:47.118 component commands . One of the great 10:47.118 --> 10:49.340 things about the program , my job is uh 10:49.340 --> 10:51.340 everyone wants more of this and the 10:51.340 --> 10:53.396 participants , both when you look at 10:53.396 --> 10:53.239 this down , at the tactical level , the 10:53.250 --> 10:55.028 soldiers and the airmen who are 10:55.028 --> 10:57.139 involved in this every day . Uh Up to 10:57.139 --> 10:58.861 our most senior leaders , they 10:58.861 --> 11:01.083 recognize the value uh in the return on 11:01.083 --> 11:03.139 investment uh that return investment 11:03.139 --> 11:05.250 piece . One of the metrics they often 11:05.250 --> 11:07.028 share . It's 1% of the nation's 11:07.028 --> 11:09.194 security cooperation budget results in 11:09.194 --> 11:11.028 20 to 30% of the touch points or 11:11.028 --> 11:13.028 engagements that combatant commands 11:13.028 --> 11:14.972 have . So they inherently see that 11:14.972 --> 11:17.139 value and that the multipliers that go 11:17.139 --> 11:20.119 with that . Um When we look at uh this 11:20.130 --> 11:21.929 demand signal for both more 11:21.940 --> 11:24.051 partnerships , which is one aspect of 11:24.051 --> 11:25.996 it , but also more resources to go 11:25.996 --> 11:28.218 towards the partnerships that we have . 11:28.239 --> 11:30.359 It's uh it's kind of a multi pronged 11:30.469 --> 11:32.580 thing that we've got to work . Uh The 11:32.580 --> 11:35.270 first part in terms of the um of the 11:35.280 --> 11:37.630 year to year edition of Nations , this 11:37.640 --> 11:40.109 past year was uh was unprecedented and 11:40.119 --> 11:42.341 adding five nations unprecedented since 11:42.341 --> 11:44.452 the beginning of the program , but it 11:44.452 --> 11:46.619 was the right time and the right fit . 11:46.619 --> 11:48.619 And as we looked at the cooperation 11:48.619 --> 11:48.340 with the Department of State and 11:48.349 --> 11:50.405 Department of Defense , it just made 11:50.405 --> 11:52.460 sense to do that . We normally would 11:52.460 --> 11:54.238 look at adding just a couple of 11:54.238 --> 11:56.460 partners a year , look across the globe 11:56.460 --> 11:58.516 at which nations have requested it . 11:58.516 --> 12:00.738 That's a key part of it , which nations 12:00.738 --> 12:02.793 are ready to embark on this . And we 12:02.793 --> 12:04.849 see a kind of an emergence of many 12:04.859 --> 12:06.859 other nations who probably wouldn't 12:06.859 --> 12:08.970 have had an interest 20 years ago who 12:08.970 --> 12:10.915 have a keen interest . Now look no 12:10.915 --> 12:13.137 further than what's going on in Ukraine 12:13.137 --> 12:15.359 and Russia , we see great interest from 12:15.359 --> 12:17.526 our Nordic partners and other partners 12:17.526 --> 12:19.470 in Europe . Enduring interest from 12:19.470 --> 12:21.526 Africa and having spent two the last 12:21.526 --> 12:23.770 four years on continent Africa , I saw 12:24.049 --> 12:25.993 the manifestation of how important 12:25.993 --> 12:28.520 those programs were to many of the uh 12:28.530 --> 12:30.530 of the smaller nations that we deal 12:30.530 --> 12:32.530 with when I say smaller in terms of 12:32.530 --> 12:34.419 their overall capacity to defense 12:34.419 --> 12:36.197 budget . The other part to your 12:36.197 --> 12:38.197 question that I'd like to , to just 12:38.197 --> 12:40.363 engage on . Um we're limited only by , 12:40.363 --> 12:42.474 by resources and , and imaginations . 12:42.799 --> 12:44.577 Uh Often times some of the most 12:44.577 --> 12:46.688 creative uh activities and the things 12:46.688 --> 12:48.688 that happen with the program are an 12:48.688 --> 12:50.743 expansion beyond Mill to mill or the 12:50.743 --> 12:53.021 creativity that goes with our soldiers , 12:53.021 --> 12:54.966 airmen and their counterparts from 12:54.966 --> 12:57.021 other countries . Uh that said there 12:57.021 --> 12:59.243 are limitations with the funding of the 12:59.243 --> 13:01.466 program , the funding processes that we 13:01.466 --> 13:03.799 have . It's about a $50 million program . 13:03.799 --> 13:06.630 We've often relied very largely each 13:06.640 --> 13:08.989 year on congressional ads . That , 13:09.000 --> 13:11.111 that's great . And we appreciate that 13:11.111 --> 13:13.278 support from the hill . The reality is 13:13.278 --> 13:15.820 getting this into base budgets , uh is 13:15.830 --> 13:17.774 something that would normalize the 13:17.774 --> 13:19.774 processes and allow us , especially 13:19.774 --> 13:21.886 when we're operating under continuing 13:21.886 --> 13:24.052 resolution . A better planning horizon 13:24.052 --> 13:26.274 working with our partners . When do you 13:26.274 --> 13:28.386 think about what it takes for a state 13:28.386 --> 13:30.552 or territory district within the US to 13:30.552 --> 13:32.719 coordinate through a combatant command 13:32.719 --> 13:34.886 with a foreign partner ? That just the 13:34.886 --> 13:37.052 admin and logistics of that to make it 13:37.052 --> 13:39.163 happen ? It's a challenge and we make 13:39.163 --> 13:41.274 it very difficult . We look at nearly 13:41.274 --> 13:43.274 100% execution of funds last year . 13:43.274 --> 13:45.690 It's just because of those efforts that 13:45.700 --> 13:47.909 said with shortfalls in budget this 13:47.919 --> 13:50.190 year , we've got hundreds of events 13:50.200 --> 13:52.144 that we've either had to cancel or 13:52.144 --> 13:54.144 postpone . And these are all events 13:54.144 --> 13:56.144 that are very much aligned with our 13:56.144 --> 13:58.367 national defense strategy and very much 13:58.367 --> 13:58.200 aligned with our partners and our 13:58.210 --> 14:00.432 combatant commands theater strategies . 14:00.510 --> 14:02.454 And from my viewpoint , one of the 14:02.454 --> 14:05.130 things I often cite you have so many 14:05.140 --> 14:07.307 stakeholders in this program , but all 14:07.307 --> 14:09.362 of the stakeholders see the richness 14:09.369 --> 14:11.425 and the goodness of this . You could 14:11.425 --> 14:13.425 almost draw a ven diagram of what a 14:13.425 --> 14:15.890 nation partner wants to do , kind of 14:15.900 --> 14:17.900 plot those points , what a chief of 14:17.900 --> 14:19.900 mission and ambassador , his or her 14:19.900 --> 14:21.890 staff want to do in terms of their 14:21.900 --> 14:24.010 focus . Look at what a combatant 14:24.020 --> 14:25.909 command wants to do . Look at our 14:25.909 --> 14:28.020 strategy and look at the capabilities 14:28.020 --> 14:30.020 within the guard . All those things 14:30.020 --> 14:31.964 come together in a little bit of a 14:31.964 --> 14:34.187 sweet spot where you then target , what 14:34.187 --> 14:33.460 is it that builds the most readiness 14:33.469 --> 14:35.869 within our formations ? Uh And how do 14:35.880 --> 14:37.769 we leverage that working with our 14:37.769 --> 14:39.936 partners ? The fact that it can adjust 14:39.936 --> 14:42.219 uh year to year event to event exercise 14:42.229 --> 14:44.340 to exercise that dynamic part is , is 14:44.340 --> 14:46.940 important . I'd suggest that if we had 14:46.950 --> 14:49.172 full funding from the services and that 14:49.172 --> 14:51.283 those congressional ads , and again , 14:51.283 --> 14:53.450 we appreciate that support are focused 14:53.450 --> 14:55.506 on those things that are emergent to 14:55.506 --> 14:57.672 the combatant commanders within a year 14:57.672 --> 14:59.839 of execution . We look at what's going 14:59.839 --> 15:01.617 on within Ukraine right now and 15:01.617 --> 15:01.330 supporting our partners who are 15:01.340 --> 15:03.562 supporting that fight . This is a vital 15:03.562 --> 15:06.890 way that the program got 30 years of 15:06.900 --> 15:09.460 trusted relationships and partnerships 15:09.650 --> 15:11.880 that go back to all the countries that 15:11.890 --> 15:14.001 are most directly involved in this uh 15:14.001 --> 15:15.946 recent discussions with our Polish 15:15.946 --> 15:18.057 counterparts or Romanian counterparts 15:18.057 --> 15:20.168 or Ukrainian counterparts . It's just 15:20.168 --> 15:22.223 you see the uh the importance of the 15:22.223 --> 15:25.330 program . So additional , um I think um 15:26.280 --> 15:28.750 the the resources having uh a process 15:28.760 --> 15:31.150 that we can uh we can depend on a 15:31.159 --> 15:33.326 little bit more soundly , year to year 15:33.326 --> 15:35.437 is helpful and then continued measure 15:35.437 --> 15:37.326 growth . And I think that goes in 15:37.326 --> 15:39.437 partnership again with the department 15:39.437 --> 15:41.603 of State Department defense . Thanks . 15:41.603 --> 15:43.826 And if I could just have a little bit , 15:43.826 --> 15:46.700 you , 30 years , some of you , some of 15:46.710 --> 15:48.543 you guys have grown up with your 15:48.543 --> 15:50.710 partners . I mean , that has to , that 15:50.710 --> 15:52.932 has to be worth something there alone . 15:53.429 --> 15:55.596 Yeah . So , one of the keys that I see 15:55.596 --> 15:57.762 and I've , I've been , uh , the person 15:57.762 --> 15:59.818 who's gone into different nations or 15:59.818 --> 16:01.707 worked on different exercises and 16:01.707 --> 16:03.651 events where it's a short duration 16:03.651 --> 16:05.707 partnership and both sides of this , 16:05.707 --> 16:07.540 you still want , you , you bring 16:07.540 --> 16:09.707 goodwill uh to that , but it's not the 16:09.707 --> 16:11.929 same as having um , a relationship that 16:11.929 --> 16:13.873 has endured over many , many years 16:13.873 --> 16:16.020 where you , you know , you exchange 16:16.030 --> 16:18.197 information outside of this families , 16:18.197 --> 16:20.363 know one another , you've broken bread 16:20.363 --> 16:22.760 uh on both sides of an ocean , uh that 16:22.770 --> 16:25.760 trust , uh , you , you can't build that 16:25.770 --> 16:27.969 overnight . Uh Those seeds that are 16:27.979 --> 16:29.979 planted . Um I think it's something 16:29.979 --> 16:32.520 that is we as , uh as United States 16:32.530 --> 16:34.641 military particularly good at and our 16:34.641 --> 16:36.849 partners are really good at . Uh The 16:36.859 --> 16:39.026 other piece is that if you look across 16:39.026 --> 16:41.248 the forces , there are so many soldiers 16:41.248 --> 16:43.809 and airmen on uh both the US side or 16:43.820 --> 16:46.000 our counterparts side who have only 16:46.010 --> 16:48.250 known an existence , a context for 16:48.260 --> 16:50.316 their military service in which they 16:50.316 --> 16:52.427 had a partnership . So they look back 16:52.427 --> 16:54.593 and this is as much a part , it's kind 16:54.593 --> 16:56.760 of the lore or the legacy within units 16:56.760 --> 16:58.982 that they hear this from the people who 16:58.982 --> 17:01.204 went before them , they hear stories uh 17:01.204 --> 17:03.260 about the events that they did , the 17:03.260 --> 17:05.260 challenges in training . Uh The the 17:05.260 --> 17:07.349 shared aspect of this , we wouldn't 17:07.359 --> 17:09.581 have realized when the uh program first 17:09.581 --> 17:11.748 started that it would then years later 17:11.748 --> 17:14.719 result in co deployments , um forces 17:14.729 --> 17:16.896 from the National Guard , deploying in 17:16.896 --> 17:19.007 harm's way and losing service members 17:19.007 --> 17:21.530 alongside partners , the richness of 17:21.540 --> 17:23.707 those connections , it , it can't be , 17:23.719 --> 17:25.830 can't be overstated . And it's one of 17:25.830 --> 17:28.108 those things that I think has made the , 17:28.108 --> 17:31.160 the program um both uh both popular in , 17:31.170 --> 17:33.226 in this enduring enthusiasm for it . 17:34.650 --> 17:36.817 Just take another virtual question and 17:36.817 --> 17:38.872 we'll go to Carla Bab with voices of 17:38.872 --> 17:42.479 America General carload with Bo A . Um 17:42.489 --> 17:44.656 Thanks for doing this . I just want to 17:44.656 --> 17:46.489 follow up on what you said about 17:46.489 --> 17:48.545 Ukraine . Can you talk about how the 17:48.545 --> 17:50.800 spill over from the war in Ukraine has 17:50.810 --> 17:52.921 affected the California partnership , 17:52.921 --> 17:54.719 for example , and not just that 17:54.729 --> 17:56.785 partnership , but the partnership um 17:56.785 --> 17:58.562 with the , with the surrounding 17:58.562 --> 18:00.618 countries like Moldova like Poland , 18:00.618 --> 18:03.390 like Romania , I appreciate the 18:03.400 --> 18:05.456 question . And I think this has been 18:05.456 --> 18:07.344 one of the things that has really 18:07.344 --> 18:09.344 brought for many people , the State 18:09.344 --> 18:11.456 Partnership program into the news and 18:11.456 --> 18:13.650 into the vision of folks who may have 18:13.660 --> 18:16.140 otherwise not realized the depth and 18:16.150 --> 18:18.540 the breadth of the relationships . So 18:18.550 --> 18:21.979 in advance of Russia's invasion of 18:21.989 --> 18:24.540 Ukraine , we were doing close 18:24.550 --> 18:27.239 partnerships , not just with the , with 18:27.250 --> 18:29.439 California and Ukraine . One of the 18:29.449 --> 18:31.979 things we often refer to is you marry 18:31.989 --> 18:33.878 one state , but you get the whole 18:33.878 --> 18:36.045 family with a guard . So when there is 18:36.045 --> 18:38.211 a capability that doesn't exist within 18:38.211 --> 18:40.211 one guard , army guard or air guard 18:40.211 --> 18:42.433 within a state , we reach across the 54 18:42.433 --> 18:44.545 states territories and district to be 18:44.545 --> 18:46.545 able to get additional resources or 18:46.545 --> 18:48.767 capability . This sort of dynamic shift 18:48.767 --> 18:50.711 really plays well to being able to 18:50.711 --> 18:52.822 support our partners needs it demands 18:52.822 --> 18:55.045 and expectations . In real time , we've 18:55.045 --> 18:57.267 got some flexibility that's built in by 18:57.267 --> 18:59.420 scaling this across the 54 in advance 18:59.430 --> 19:01.597 of Russia's invasion , we were working 19:01.597 --> 19:03.708 closely . And if you think about some 19:03.708 --> 19:06.140 of the things that have been , I think 19:06.150 --> 19:09.000 sources of great success in Ukraine's 19:09.010 --> 19:11.410 success in defending itself against 19:11.420 --> 19:15.150 this unjust illegal invasion . Um You 19:15.160 --> 19:17.359 see the the manifestation of that on , 19:17.369 --> 19:19.849 on the battlefield . Uh Some examples 19:19.859 --> 19:21.803 of that , that I would cite that I 19:21.803 --> 19:24.026 think are very important . The emphasis 19:24.026 --> 19:26.050 that we place on um on unit and 19:26.060 --> 19:28.930 tactical level leadership driven by non 19:28.939 --> 19:30.883 commissioned officers , ensues and 19:30.883 --> 19:32.883 enlisted professional development , 19:32.883 --> 19:35.349 that culture within the US military and 19:35.359 --> 19:37.550 within many of our partners and allies 19:37.880 --> 19:40.579 is not something that is , has been an 19:40.589 --> 19:43.189 aspect or strength within all countries . 19:43.199 --> 19:45.310 And I think it's something that we've 19:45.310 --> 19:47.477 shared . If you look at the small unit 19:47.477 --> 19:49.643 tactics and success within Ukraine , I 19:49.643 --> 19:51.755 think part of that is attributed back 19:51.755 --> 19:53.643 to much of the work that was done 19:53.643 --> 19:56.719 between Ukraine , California and other 19:56.729 --> 19:59.010 partners in the region . I'd also say 19:59.020 --> 20:01.849 that when we look at the US focus on 20:01.859 --> 20:04.081 building readiness and capabilities and 20:04.081 --> 20:06.081 the building blocks , how we manage 20:06.081 --> 20:08.248 training , whether this be army or air 20:08.248 --> 20:10.930 of individual , lower level collective 20:10.939 --> 20:13.369 and building that I think you can see 20:13.380 --> 20:15.602 the evidence that Ukraine has leveraged 20:15.602 --> 20:17.900 this to great effect against Russian 20:17.910 --> 20:21.079 forces . Similarly , I think that this 20:21.089 --> 20:23.500 is really supercharged the effort for 20:23.510 --> 20:25.750 the neighbor nations there both in 20:25.760 --> 20:27.982 advance of the invasion . And certainly 20:27.982 --> 20:31.760 afterwards , we see a galvanizing of 20:31.780 --> 20:34.010 the relationships in NATO . And I think 20:34.020 --> 20:36.530 a galvanizing and the support across 20:36.540 --> 20:38.829 the state partnership program . One of 20:38.839 --> 20:40.950 the things that the state partnership 20:40.950 --> 20:42.895 uh program brings to the combatant 20:42.895 --> 20:44.839 commanders and dod writ large is a 20:44.839 --> 20:47.280 connection of not just these bilateral 20:47.290 --> 20:49.012 relationships but multilateral 20:49.012 --> 20:51.179 relationships . I say the multilateral 20:51.179 --> 20:53.390 because often if there is a um 20:53.579 --> 20:56.310 combatant command exercise or event or 20:56.319 --> 20:58.910 service component command uh event , 20:59.329 --> 21:01.107 the state partnership becomes a 21:01.107 --> 21:02.829 multiplier to , to bringing in 21:02.829 --> 21:04.885 additional partners and players from 21:04.885 --> 21:06.940 other nations who may have otherwise 21:06.940 --> 21:09.107 not been a part of that , the richness 21:09.107 --> 21:11.273 of growing those capabilities . Then I 21:11.273 --> 21:13.385 think it manifests in , in growth and 21:13.385 --> 21:15.609 capabilities on , on all sides . Uh One 21:15.619 --> 21:18.270 of the examples they often use . Um and 21:18.280 --> 21:20.224 this is indirectly related to what 21:20.224 --> 21:22.336 we're talking about . We have a small 21:22.336 --> 21:24.558 state , uh Vermont that has three state 21:24.558 --> 21:26.780 partners , their oldest North Macedonia 21:26.780 --> 21:29.339 now celebrating 30 years , uh 15 year 21:29.349 --> 21:31.349 old relationship with the nation of 21:31.349 --> 21:33.460 Senegal and Africa and the first year 21:33.460 --> 21:36.160 relationship with Austria . Seeing now 21:36.170 --> 21:38.170 the interaction between those three 21:38.170 --> 21:40.420 nations , some of that which occurs 21:40.430 --> 21:42.597 completely out of the realm of what we 21:42.597 --> 21:44.597 do with state partnership becomes a 21:44.597 --> 21:46.819 multiplier for each of those partners . 21:46.819 --> 21:48.930 And we definitely see that in Eastern 21:48.930 --> 21:51.208 Europe Carlo . Thanks for the question . 21:51.819 --> 21:54.041 Do we have any uh questions here in the 21:54.041 --> 21:56.359 room or follow ups ? Ok . Thanks . Uh 21:56.369 --> 21:58.591 Just a quick follow up . Uh with regard 21:58.591 --> 22:01.319 to Ukraine has the partnership program 22:01.329 --> 22:03.719 been paused essentially since the 22:03.729 --> 22:05.785 Russian invasion . Are you providing 22:05.785 --> 22:08.189 any assistance , you know , remotely 22:08.209 --> 22:10.469 and then just kind of looking ahead , 22:10.479 --> 22:12.423 you know , long term assistance to 22:12.423 --> 22:14.201 Ukraine has been a big topic of 22:14.201 --> 22:16.423 discussion at the ongoing NATO summit . 22:16.423 --> 22:19.140 Are you looking to expand that 22:19.150 --> 22:21.579 relationship in the future specifically 22:21.589 --> 22:23.645 through this program or just through 22:23.645 --> 22:25.829 the guard writ large in terms of 22:25.839 --> 22:29.180 improving Ukraine's long term security 22:29.189 --> 22:31.356 posture ? Sure , John , I'll take that 22:31.356 --> 22:33.949 in two parts . First off , we've 22:33.959 --> 22:36.369 continued to do training and support 22:36.380 --> 22:38.599 both for Ukraine and other partners . 22:38.739 --> 22:41.260 Obviously , things have had to shift to 22:41.270 --> 22:43.381 areas where we could do that training 22:43.381 --> 22:46.310 safely . And I think as we look at 22:46.319 --> 22:48.152 equipment that's been fielded in 22:48.152 --> 22:50.208 support of Ukraine's efforts and not 22:50.208 --> 22:52.263 just equipment but capabilities that 22:52.263 --> 22:54.430 are needed to grow to support both the 22:54.430 --> 22:56.880 fight and then the support from nations 22:56.890 --> 22:59.569 we're helping with everything from 22:59.579 --> 23:01.599 logistics training , all the things 23:01.609 --> 23:03.720 that it takes to bring the capability 23:03.720 --> 23:05.609 to be on the battlefield that has 23:05.609 --> 23:07.849 continued and will continue there . I 23:07.859 --> 23:10.630 think the , to me it seems that there 23:10.640 --> 23:12.751 will be a growth in the demand signal 23:12.751 --> 23:14.973 from our partners in a number of ways . 23:14.973 --> 23:17.829 First off , our partners have paid a 23:17.839 --> 23:20.229 tremendous price in supporting and 23:20.239 --> 23:22.729 providing equipment . Um Much of the 23:22.739 --> 23:26.489 equipment that they had uh that was not 23:26.520 --> 23:28.687 uh obviously backfilled or they didn't 23:28.687 --> 23:30.670 have ready backfill for types and 23:30.680 --> 23:33.469 pieces of equipment . Uh that is going 23:33.479 --> 23:35.479 to have to be that demand signal is 23:35.479 --> 23:37.760 going to have to be met . So I think 23:37.770 --> 23:39.992 there will be new that there will be an 23:39.992 --> 23:43.280 opportunity . Uh the Guard Army and Air 23:43.339 --> 23:45.450 uh do an exceptional job of doing new 23:45.450 --> 23:47.617 equipment , training and new equipment 23:47.617 --> 23:49.617 fielding . It's kind of a bread and 23:49.617 --> 23:49.530 butter for something that happens 23:49.540 --> 23:51.729 across the 54 every day . And it's a 23:51.739 --> 23:54.020 logical expansion to help our partners 23:54.229 --> 23:56.900 uh as they field replacement equipment 23:57.810 --> 23:59.977 and train up in that . I think the two 23:59.977 --> 24:01.977 way street aspect of it , we always 24:01.977 --> 24:03.754 look at this as being kind of a 24:03.754 --> 24:05.810 shoulder to shoulder . We learn from 24:05.810 --> 24:07.921 our partners and they learn from us , 24:07.921 --> 24:09.921 we share best practices and I think 24:09.921 --> 24:11.977 this is an opportunity as we look to 24:11.977 --> 24:14.430 the future and hopefully at some point , 24:14.439 --> 24:16.606 peace in the region that there will be 24:16.606 --> 24:18.495 a reset that's needed for all the 24:18.495 --> 24:20.495 militaries who have done so much to 24:20.495 --> 24:22.383 support Ukraine . And indeed with 24:22.383 --> 24:24.383 Ukraine themselves . And I think we 24:24.383 --> 24:26.606 will be , you know , posture to be able 24:26.606 --> 24:28.661 to support that working very closely 24:28.661 --> 24:30.883 with the combatant commander and across 24:30.883 --> 24:32.939 the department . Thank you . We have 24:32.939 --> 24:35.161 time for one more question . Uh We have 24:35.161 --> 24:34.949 a virtual one in the queue . Uh We will 24:34.959 --> 24:37.292 go to Gina Cavallaro with army magazine . 24:38.439 --> 24:41.060 Thank you . Um Thanks General Zana for 24:41.069 --> 24:43.859 doing this . Um You said there were 24:43.869 --> 24:46.420 five nations added in the last year and 24:46.430 --> 24:49.180 that , that was uh the most uh a , a 24:49.189 --> 24:52.089 big year for adding nations . What do 24:52.099 --> 24:53.988 you see in the coming year or the 24:53.988 --> 24:56.369 coming five years ? And can you also um 24:56.380 --> 24:58.609 I guess in closing um for the 24:58.619 --> 25:01.800 uninitiated uh uh make a statement 25:01.810 --> 25:04.099 about why the National Guard is the 25:04.109 --> 25:07.459 right way for this program to continue . 25:09.260 --> 25:11.482 Thanks for the question . Um So , first 25:11.489 --> 25:13.378 off uh this year , the way things 25:13.378 --> 25:15.390 worked out to add three African 25:15.400 --> 25:18.010 partners , uh Malawi and Zambia will be 25:18.020 --> 25:19.853 a combined partnership and we're 25:19.853 --> 25:21.964 currently evaluating the applications 25:21.964 --> 25:24.076 uh for multiple states who wish to uh 25:24.076 --> 25:27.150 to uh be a part of that . Uh Gabon and 25:27.160 --> 25:29.216 another African nation which will be 25:29.216 --> 25:31.800 added . We added both Samoa uh to an 25:31.810 --> 25:34.599 existing partnership with um uh with 25:34.609 --> 25:36.776 Nevada and then Norway and Minnesota , 25:36.776 --> 25:38.887 I mentioned the formalization of this 25:38.887 --> 25:41.220 partnership that's existed for 50 years . 25:41.220 --> 25:43.387 If you look to the future , I think we 25:43.387 --> 25:45.498 look at uh the capacity to expand the 25:45.498 --> 25:47.665 program as being a couple of nations a 25:47.665 --> 25:49.776 year and I purposely don't , uh put a 25:49.776 --> 25:51.720 specific number on it because it's 25:51.720 --> 25:53.942 dependent upon both what uh the nations 25:53.942 --> 25:56.109 request , the combatant commanders and 25:56.109 --> 25:58.331 Department of State support and then it 25:58.331 --> 26:00.442 is on , on funding . We don't want to 26:00.442 --> 26:02.665 spread ourselves so thin that we're not 26:02.665 --> 26:04.831 able to , I have the depth of the , of 26:04.831 --> 26:06.998 the training operations , exercise and 26:06.998 --> 26:08.998 exchanges that , that each of these 26:08.998 --> 26:10.887 partners deserve . And our uh the 26:10.887 --> 26:13.109 evolution of this , I think is going to 26:13.109 --> 26:12.780 continue . There will be some years 26:12.790 --> 26:15.349 where there'll be a slightly larger and 26:15.359 --> 26:17.560 a slightly less number . So I think 26:17.569 --> 26:20.229 over the , the five years , um we'll 26:20.239 --> 26:22.750 see that evolve the , the second part 26:22.760 --> 26:24.704 and I think the guard is , is just 26:24.704 --> 26:26.816 uniquely suited to this program . And 26:26.816 --> 26:29.038 there's a lot of different ways you can 26:29.038 --> 26:31.093 look at that uh first off uh citizen 26:31.093 --> 26:33.204 soldiers , uh this whole idea of , of 26:33.204 --> 26:35.316 having both civilian capabilities , a 26:35.316 --> 26:37.482 connection back to state and community 26:37.482 --> 26:39.538 and a community based force a lot of 26:39.538 --> 26:41.640 times with our partners , this is um 26:42.069 --> 26:43.958 this is a more approachable or an 26:43.958 --> 26:47.400 easier construct um for them to engage 26:47.410 --> 26:49.400 with . You often find that we have 26:49.410 --> 26:51.579 civilian skill sets across the guard . 26:51.589 --> 26:53.422 This is true for the rest of the 26:53.422 --> 26:55.200 reserve components and security 26:55.200 --> 26:57.145 cooperation . But the guard really 26:57.145 --> 26:59.311 excels at this , those civilian skills 26:59.311 --> 27:01.478 which then translate to something that 27:01.478 --> 27:03.589 you can do on the ground . An example 27:03.589 --> 27:05.700 that I provided for a couple of years 27:05.700 --> 27:07.811 deployed in Africa . I saw there were 27:07.811 --> 27:10.033 often things that were asked for by our 27:10.033 --> 27:11.922 partners that weren't necessarily 27:11.922 --> 27:13.978 strictly a military capability , but 27:13.978 --> 27:16.219 there was a civilian experience that , 27:16.229 --> 27:18.451 that we could bring to bear to help the 27:18.451 --> 27:20.618 partner in that . So often as we start 27:20.618 --> 27:22.618 with a mill to mill engagement that 27:22.618 --> 27:24.673 expands into the whole of government 27:24.673 --> 27:26.673 and the whole of government part is 27:26.673 --> 27:28.896 really , I , I describe it as a special 27:28.896 --> 27:31.062 sauce for the uh for the program . You 27:31.062 --> 27:33.285 start having things like municipalities 27:33.285 --> 27:35.739 working um as sister cities and towns 27:35.750 --> 27:37.806 with one another . You look at state 27:37.806 --> 27:39.861 government doing engagements . We've 27:39.861 --> 27:41.972 had many foreign partners visiting uh 27:41.972 --> 27:43.750 their states . Uh and similarly 27:43.750 --> 27:45.750 governors and officials from states 27:45.750 --> 27:47.694 going to their state partners , uh 27:47.694 --> 27:49.639 academic to academic think tank to 27:49.639 --> 27:52.280 think tank , uh economic uh first 27:52.290 --> 27:54.401 responder , all of these things add a 27:54.401 --> 27:56.457 richness to this whole of government 27:56.457 --> 27:58.401 experience that I think the guards 27:58.401 --> 28:00.569 uniquely suited to , to fill . Uh when 28:00.579 --> 28:02.746 we see the very best of the programs , 28:02.746 --> 28:05.069 the programs that expand into this 28:05.079 --> 28:07.260 space in a way that is authentic to 28:07.270 --> 28:09.492 both the capabilities and needs of both 28:09.492 --> 28:11.714 the state and the nation . There's just 28:11.714 --> 28:13.937 this richness in this relationship that 28:13.937 --> 28:15.659 occurs and then it's where the 28:15.659 --> 28:17.714 imaginations go . And typically , um 28:17.714 --> 28:19.881 these things are , are not things that 28:19.881 --> 28:21.603 um that we're funding from the 28:21.603 --> 28:23.492 Department of Defense . They're , 28:23.492 --> 28:25.548 they're a bonus that starts building 28:25.548 --> 28:27.492 trust and confidence and deepening 28:27.492 --> 28:29.659 those roots when I look at some of the 28:29.659 --> 28:32.170 pairings and I saw this uh both in , in 28:32.180 --> 28:36.140 uh deployments uh within the Centcom uh 28:36.150 --> 28:40.040 UAR and , and with a Aor , you 28:40.050 --> 28:42.900 see that there are um relationships 28:42.910 --> 28:45.132 between a state and a nation that start 28:45.132 --> 28:48.079 building um an understanding that our 28:48.089 --> 28:51.390 nations and our states uh have so much 28:51.400 --> 28:53.567 in common in terms of their desire for 28:53.567 --> 28:55.949 having peace and security opportunities 28:55.959 --> 28:58.869 for prosperity , the opportunities to 28:58.880 --> 29:01.530 um to educate and , and have safety for 29:01.540 --> 29:03.930 families . When we get folks together 29:03.939 --> 29:06.329 from both sides of this equation , we 29:06.339 --> 29:09.160 often see that we're far more alike and 29:09.170 --> 29:11.680 we have so much in shared values . Uh 29:11.689 --> 29:13.911 That is one of those things that really 29:13.911 --> 29:15.967 goes to building trust . And I think 29:16.010 --> 29:19.209 building a warmth that exists in so 29:19.219 --> 29:21.275 many of these relationships and just 29:21.275 --> 29:23.441 something that the Guard does well and 29:23.441 --> 29:25.663 our nation partners really respond well 29:25.663 --> 29:27.830 to . Thanks for the question , right . 29:27.830 --> 29:29.997 Thank you General and thank you to all 29:29.997 --> 29:31.830 those in the room and online for 29:31.830 --> 29:33.997 joining us today . Please feel free to 29:33.997 --> 29:35.830 send additional questions to the 29:35.830 --> 29:38.052 National Guard Bureau media desk and we 29:38.052 --> 29:37.300 will follow up on those and any taking 29:37.310 --> 29:39.421 questions as soon as possible . Thank 29:39.421 --> 29:43.369 you . So , is there ever 29:43.380 --> 29:43.959 going to be