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Video by Staff Sgt. Drake Chandler

Brig. Gen. Chris McKinney and Brig. Gen. Leon LaPoint interview

U.S. Army Europe and Africa

June 8, 2025 | 4:40

Brig. Gen. Chris McKinney, Deputy Director for Partnering, Security Cooperation, and Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction, U.S. European Command, and Brig. Gen. Leon LaPoint, Assistant Adjutant General of the New Jersey National Guard, speak on the purpose of Immediate Response 25 and the benefits of integrating the State Partnership Program in Bize, Albania, June 9, 2025. Immediate Response 25 is a large-scale multinational exercise to execute regional defense plans that strengthens the collective ability of NATO Allies to operate together. Demonstrating global deterrence and the U.S. Army’s ability to rapidly deploy U.S.-based combat power in Europe and the Arctic region alongside Allies and partners, DEFENDER 25 brings U.S. troops together with forces from 29 Allied and partner nations to build readiness through large-scale combat training from May 11-June 24, 2025. DEFENDER 25 increases the lethality of the NATO alliance through large-scale tactical training maneuvers and long-range fires, builds unit readiness in a complex joint, multinational environment and leverages host nation capabilities to increase the U.S. Army’s operational reach. During three large-scale combat training exercises—Swift Response, Immediate Response, and Saber Guardian—Ally and partner forces integrate and expand multi-domain operations capability, demonstrating combined command and control structures and readiness to respond to crisis and conflict. (U.S. Army National Guard video by Staff Sgt. Drake Chandler)