Key leaders of the Fredericksburg-based 229th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and other Virginia National Guard personnel traveled to Finland to observe a Local Defense Exercise, or PAPU, Sept. 4-9, 2023. The PAPU, which is an anagram of the Finnish “Paikallis Puolustus,” meaning “Local Defense,” took place in several locations throughout Finland, including Kouvala, Hamina, Kotka and Kankaanpaa.