The Pennsylvania National Guardโs state partnership program with Lithuania manifests the ideals of peace through cooperation, and empathy through understanding.
The program is also an exchange of experience, expertise, culture, and ideals. The benefits of the program go way beyond those of military purpose.
โWe talk about the length of the partnership and the importance of the partnership,โ said Major Kenneth Swartzell, whoโs been the director of the state partnership program for the Pennsylvania National Guard for the last three years. โBut we believe that more than just a partnership, itโs a friendship that takes mutual respect. If you donโt understand one another, itโs not going to work.”
โI have gotten to know some of my peers from Lithuania,โ he continued. โI will be in the Pennsylvania National Guard forever and I fully expect to be engaged with people from Lithuania for the rest of my career. In order to develop friendships, youโve got to make concerted efforts to understand, or itโs very superficial.โ
From Sept. 6 to 17, the Pennsylvania National Guard hosted about 33 military personnel from Lithuania at its training headquarters at Fort Indiantown Gap in northern Lebanon County. During the exercises, members of the Lithuanian Land Forces reserve received instruction focusing on firefighting and medical training, among other disciplines.
But the Lithuanian military personnel were also provided a glimpse into American culture through area sightseeing excursions off base.
At the same time, on the other side of the world, around 40 members of Pennsylvania guardsmen were undertaking similar training exercises in Lithuania.
โItโs a United States initiative that allows us to address national defense issues around the globe,โ said Swartzell. โIt focuses on security, strategy and deterrents. This keeps our forces in the proper readiness cycles. The goal is to build interoperability. It helps us to be in a better global position. The partnership is not only important on a national and state level, but also on a global level. We build readiness. This is strategic.”
โDuring this particular exchange, we integrated their personnel into our everyday operations,โ he added. โItโs a highly operational training environment. When I go there (Lithuania), I make sure I understand their history and culture. The rest of the time is pretty much training. But itโs never enough time.โ
โThey (the Lithuanians) were here for different types of military training,โ said Brad Rhen, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania National Guard. โBut they also did some sightseeing. Theyโre not locked down. Weโre trying to be good partners. In addition to the training, we want them to learn about our country and we want to learn about their country. When youโre performing several weeks of work, you also want to give them some down time.โ
In the 28 years since the state partnership program was established, the Pennsylvania National Guard and Lithuania have engaged in more than 750 exchanges. Personally, Swartzellโs position requires that he spends one to two weeks a month overseas helping to manage strategic partnerships like the one with Lithuania.
โItโs a beautiful country,โ he said. โThe culture is amazing and itโs rich in history. Theyโre very much a proud people. In America, we talk about freedom, but they truly understand it. When they say theyโre going to fight for freedom, many have already lived it.”
โThere are a lot of historic places there,โ he added. โBut their history is very short compared to the Baltic states and Europe. Itโs an honor to go there. Lithuania is very much a beacon for democratic principles.โ
Pennsylvaniaโs relationship with Lithuania began in 1993, as one of the first three partnership programs established by the U.S. matching a foreign country with a stateโs national guard. Since then, the U.S. has established about 85 similar national guard partnerships with countries around the world.
A complex algorithm helped determine that Pennsylvania and Lithuania would be a good match on a few levels.
โItโs a national agreement involving the state department, the department of the defense and the national guard,โ said Swartzell, a 38-year-old native of Reedsville. โPennsylvania and Lithuania have similar populations, and there were also cultural considerations and geographic considerations. Itโs a detailed analysis. Itโs not a flip-a-coin kind of thing.”
โWe have similar military capabilities. The not-so-obvious factor is that Pennsylvania has one of the largest Lithuanian populations in the country. Itโs similar geographically. Our terrain is not much different than Lithuaniaโs.โ
โEach stateโs national guard has a partnership with a country,โ said Rhen. โThe idea in establishing these partnerships was to increase the goodwill between the countries. Weโre working with allies around the world to build stronger relationships. The partnership has been very beneficial to the Pennsylvania National Guard and Lithuania. We send people over there and they send people over here. We learn how they do things, and they learn how we do things. It has many benefits.โ
Three years before the start of the partnership program, Lithuania had redeclared its independence from the Soviet Union. Lithuaniaโs geographic location in Europe and near Russia make it strategically attractive to the United States.
โOnce Lithuaniaโs independence was restored, they joined alliances like NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and the EU (European Union),โ Swartzell explained. โThey fought for their freedom, and theyโve worked to preserve it. Our relationship with Lithuania is one of the statesโ strongest partnerships. Weโve accomplished a lot over the last 28 years, but weโve also transitioned into more strategic initiatives.
โThis is not just some military job you do for a couple of years and move on,โ he concluded. โIt changes your outlook. At some point, Iโd like to take my family to Lithuania and show them their beautiful country.โ
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