Armenpress

22-MEMBER US DELEGATION VISITS ARMENIA

YEREVAN, MAY 27, ARMENPRESS: The US Embassy in Yerevan told Armenpress
that Adjutant General of the Kansas National Guard, Major General Tod M.
Bunting, leads a delegation of Military and Civilian Leaders from Kansas
visiting Armenia under the State Partnership Program.
It said a delegation of 22 military and civilian leaders is visiting
Armenia from the 25th to the 30th of May, 2005, to discuss areas of possible
cooperation between Kansas and Armenia under the auspices of the State
Partnership Program (SPP). This is Major General Bunting’s second trip to
Armenia and the first delegation to include civic leaders. Delegation
members will be meeting with Armenian government officials including the
Ministry of Defense, Emergency Management Administration, Ministry of
Health, National Institute of Health, National Education Institute,
universities, agricultural projects, law enforcement agencies, and
representatives from the National Assembly.
The Kansas delegation includes state senators and representatives,
members of the armed forces , and representatives involved in agriculture,
law enforcement, education, media, and health. The State Partnership Program
is initiated with the National Guard of a given state, with coordination
provided by the Office of Defense Cooperation at the U.S. Embassy, and may
include military-to-military, military-to-civilian, and civilian-to-civilian
programs of cooperation.
The National Guard consists of men and women who, though working at
regular civilian jobs in their home state, dedicate a part of their time to
military service. Every state and territory has its own National Guard as
provided by the Constitution of the United States. The Guard in each state
is made up of Army National Guard and Air National Guard units. Guard units
may serve to assist during natural disasters, to support regular Army or Air
Force units, and, when called upon, to bear arms against their nation’s
enemies. The National Guard of a given state is under the control of the
governor during peacetime, yet is available to the President during national
emergencies.
The State Partnership Program links National Guard states and territories
with partner countries for the purpose of fostering mutual interests and
establishing long-term relationships across all levels of society. The SPP
between Kansas and Armenia began with initial discussions in March 2003. The
Kansas-Armenia SPP was officially inaugurated during the fall of 2003. The
Armenian military has asked Kansas for assistance in the two major areas:
Peacekeeping Operations and Health/Medical programs. Other areas of
cooperation include Emergency Management and Planning and Disaster Response.
Further programs in different areas are expected to follow in time as the
relationship develops and widens. This visit is a key step in that
direction.
From: Baghdasarian