RALEIGH, N.C. – Senior leaders from the North Carolina National Guard are hosting representatives from Moldova, Botswana, Malawi and Zambia this week for a hurricane response exercise.

The six-day event, from April 21-26 in Raleigh, N.C., is part of the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program. It is another way to strengthen the relationship between the North Carolina National Guard and its partners.

The National Guard is one of the most dynamic components in the Department of Defense, with more than 430,000 Soldiers and Airmen serving in full-time and traditional roles. While their missions at home and abroad are typically separate, the rare moments when they overlap create unique and valuable training opportunities found only in the Guard.

“The military is not only about fighting for the defense of your nation; it is also about helping the people,” said U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Todd Hunt, the adjutant general of North Carolina.

In October 2024, the North Carolina Guard activated more than 4,500 service members over 58 days to help the people of western North Carolina recover from the destruction and devastation of Hurricane Helene. These citizen Soldiers and Airmen worked alongside National Guardsmen from 15 other states, more than 1,500 active-duty service members from the 82nd and the 101st Airborne Divisions, members from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), individuals from North Carolina’s Department of Public Safety, countless volunteer agencies, and individual volunteers from across the United States and Canada.

The North Carolina Guard is sharing the lessons learned from this catastrophic event with their SPP partners.

“The NCNG State Partnership Program is hosting landmark events with key government officials from four partner nations participating in valuable discussions focused on coordinating civil and military responses to domestic crises,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Mike Sterling, the lead planner for the North Carolina Guard State Partnership Program. “This is the first time these types of multilateral discussions have taken place within our program.”

North Carolina Guard leaders understand and embrace the significance of being part of the community, whether local communities in North Carolina or global communities worldwide.

“This hurricane exercise with our SPP partners shows two things: how destructive Hurricane Helene was and how the lessons we’ve learned from it can help people in every corner of the earth,” said U.S. Army Col. Pat Henderson, the North Carolina Army National Guard’s chief of staff.