The search for four US soldiers who went missing during a training exercise in eastern Lithuania on Tuesday, the 25th of March, continues. The armoured vehicle in which they were travelling was found submerged in water, according to the Lithuanian broadcaster LRT and Reuters.
“The M88 Hercules armoured vehicle in which the four missing US soldiers were travelling during training has been found,” the US army said in a statement.
The military search and rescue operation has been ongoing since 4.45 p.m. on Tuesday, when the soldiers and their vehicle went missing at the Pabrade training ground, about 15 kilometres from Belarus.
ON THE SAME DAY, LITHUANIAN AND FOREIGN SOLDIERS, AS WELL AS HELICOPTERS FROM THE AIR FORCE AND THE STATE BORDER GUARD SERVICE, WERE SENT TO SEARCH FOR THE MISSING, MILITARY OFFICIALS SAID.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, visiting Warsaw on Wednesday said that four American soldiers had died, adding that he did not know any details.
However, the Lithuanian Armed Forces later stated that there was no evidence that the missing soldiers had actually died.
“At the moment there is no evidence or information to confirm the death of the soldiers. The rescue operation led by the Lithuanian Armed Forces is continuing intensively,” on Wednesday evening the Armed Forces said on X.
NATO spokesperson Allison Hart later said that Rutte had made a mistake and had not meant to say that the soldiers were dead.
“We regret any confusion over @SecGenNATO’s statements on this matter. He was referring to breaking news and did not confirm the fate of the missing, which is still unknown,” she wrote on X.
Defence Minister Dovilė Šakalienė, who visited the scene late on Wednesday evening, said no bodies had been found.
“It would therefore be wrong to say that the soldiers are dead,” she told reporters. “There is no confirmation. As soon as the operation is complete, as soon as there is confirmation of one outcome or the other, we will certainly keep everyone informed.”
SHE SAID THE SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATION WAS TECHNICALLY COMPLEX.
Defence chief Raimund Vaikšnor said rescuers were ascertaining how quickly the swampy area could be drained.
“The equipment and machinery that would be needed have now been concentrated [here]. You all know how important the presence of US troops in Lithuania is. Their soldiers are like our soldiers to us. That is why we are sparing no effort to find them,” Vaikšnoras said, adding that it was not yet clear how long the operation would take.
All soldiers from the 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, were conducting planned tactical training at the time of the incident, the US Army said earlier.
“The search and rescue mission for the missing US soldiers continues in Pabrade. Until they are found – we remain hopeful, stand with their families, brothers in arms and all those who are searching,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda wrote on social media.
According to a US Army official in Europe, the M88 is essentially a giant army tow truck designed to rescue damaged tanks from the battlefield.
They had been sent to retrieve another heavy vehicle, but may have run off the road and into a swamp, the official said. The soldiers were believed to have been trapped inside as the M88 plunged under water, the official said.