Egypt and the Texas National Guard Bureau have for years agreed to address security challenges, foster cooperation and facilitate exchanges as part of the US National Guard Bureau's State Partnership Program (SPP).

Egypt and the Texas National Guard Bureau formally established a partnership under the SPP in June 2021 during a ceremony in Cairo.

The collaboration marked the beginning of a long-term relationship built on years of existing military cooperation and has since fostered stronger diplomatic and cultural ties between Texas and Egypt.

The US Defense Department launched the SPP 30 years ago to build and strengthen military-to-military and civilian-to-military relationships between US states and partner countries.

The SPP links a unique component of the Department of Defense, a state's National Guard, with the armed forces or equivalent of a partner country in a cooperative, enduring and mutually beneficial relationship.

Enhancing capabilities

Since the founding of the partnership, the Texas National Guard and the Egyptian military have identified several areas of emphasis for training exercises and exchanges.

These include C-130 and F-16 operations, AH-64 Apache helicopter flight maneuver and maintenance, cyber defense, logistics, special operations forces, homeland security response preparedness, military support to civilian authorities and humanitarian and disaster assistance response.

Both parties have facilitated various subject matter expert exchanges aimed at enhancing the operational capabilities and readiness of both forces.

These sessions have focused on commanders' resilience programs, cavalry scout tactics, civil disturbance operations, explosive ordnance operations and marksmanship.

For its part, the Texas National Guard has contributed troops to five rotations of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) in the Sinai Peninsula since 2006. The MFO oversees the terms of the 1979 Camp David peace treaty between Egypt and Israel.

More recently, Texas Guard members participated in Exercise Bright Star, a series of biennial combined and joint military exercises led by the United States and Egypt to enhance regional security and stability by improving interoperability among participating nations.

In 2023, Texas Army National Guard troops conducted an airborne jump into Egypt as part of Bright Star 23.

The operation, supported by the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing's C-130J Super Hercules unit, highlighted the Guard's commitment to strengthening ties with Egypt and enhancing regional security.