Maj. Gen. (KS) Lee Tafanelli, the adjutant general of Kansas National Guard, is visiting Armenia with members of his senior staff from Monday to Friday.

The visit is part of the ongoing exchanges arranged under the State Partnership Program, a National Guard Bureau program that links the National Guard of participating states with developing nations to foster mutually beneficial military-to-military, military-to-civilian, and civilian-to-civilian relationships.

Kansas and Armenia conduct 15 to 20 engagements a year focusing on a variety of professional fields such as emergency response, law enforcement, medical training and military operations, salina.com reports.

“My visit last year was very informative. The Armenians are very warm and hospitable people. I am looking forward to renewing the relationships I made last year and making some new ones,” said Tafanelli.

During the visit, the delegation will meet with John Heffern, US Ambassador to Armenia; Seyran Ohanyan, Armenian Minister of Defense; Colonel-General Yuri Khachaturov, Chief of Staff; and Armen Yeritsyan, Minister of Emergency Situations.