Nausori Highlands, Fiji. (October 4, 2024):  They are separated by 5,700 miles of ocean, but that has not prevented the Nevada National Guard from striking a new partnership with the island nation of Fiji. In this photo by Sergeant First Class Whitney Hughes, U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Alec Canepa instructs his Fijian counterparts in military mountaineering techniques during Exercise Cartwheel 2024. The Nevada National Guard is partnered with Fiji and Tonga under the Department of Defense National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program. For twenty-six years, the program has paired American National Guard units with allied countries for training and humanitarian purposes.

This year’s exercise included two weeks of intensive training involving over four hundred multinational forces from seven nations, including the U.S., Fiji, Tonga, Australia, New Zealand, France, and the United Kingdom. The Nevada Guard, including Soldiers from the 609th Engineer Company, spearheaded key activities such as rappelling and live-fire exercises. The Americans also coordinated plans to come to Fiji’s rescue in a humanitarian crisis. The current Defense Cooperation Agreement between the U.S. and Fiji/Tonga includes security funding and considerable support for Fiji’s peacekeeping forces and Navy. The security cooperation agreement also calls for American military protection to ensure the territorial integrity of Fiji.

For the Nevada Soldiers, this was a chance to travel to an exotic locale to develop personal and cultural bonds with our allies in the Indo-Pacific.