Skopje, 28 September 2023 (MIA) — The Ministry of Defense celebrated Thursday the 30-year partnership between the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia and the National Guard of Vermont.

In her speech, Minister of Defense Slavjanka Petrovska said the partnership was a source of constant support.

"This partnership is not just a signed document. It has been a helping hand and constant support throughout all these 30 years," she said. 

"Thirty years of over 350 activities: exercises and training that more than 1,800 army members took part in, but also an exceptional mission. A difficult, complicated, dangerous, but successful nonethless – the joint mission of Macedonian and American soldiers in Afghanistan in 2010," Petrovska said.

The defense minister said the partnership had contributed to the current success of the Macedonian Army, which she said was an allied army investing in its capacities and successfully performing missions and drills with other allied armies.

"I am glad that the positive example of our defense cooperation has increasingly been applied in other sectors of our country. May the 40th anniversary be marked by even greater successes and, of course, the most important, lasting friendships," Petrovska said.

Major General Gregory Knight, the adjutant general for the Vermont National Guard, said the successful partnership between the two countries was owed to the persistence and dedication of the people who were part of the cooperation.

Noting that he had been actively participating in the partnership for almost half his life, Knight said that it was crucial to pass on the knowledge and experience and make the next generations even more successful.

North Macedonia and Vermont have been in the US National Guard State Partnership Program since the Department of Defense National Guard Bureau program began in 1993. mr/