Video

Video by Sgt. 1st Class Jon Soucy

2/123rd Artillery takes part in exercise Immediate Response

National Guard Bureau

May 12, 2024 | 0:47

Soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 123rd Field Artillery Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard, provided artillery support during exercise Immediate Response in Ustka, Poland. Part of the Defender Europe exercise series, Immediate Response saw Polish army forward observers integrate with the battalion's forward observers and call in artillery missions. More than 22,000 service members from the U.S., Poland, the Czech Republic, and the U.K. participated in the exercise, which ran May 3-20 and included live-fire exercises, wet gap crossings, and other training designed to strengthen interoperability among participants. Since 1994 the Illinois National Guard and the Poland have been partners in the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program, which pairs Guard elements with partner nations worldwide for military-to-military exchanges and mutual training events. (U.S. Army Video by Sgt. 1st Class Jon Soucy)