The search continues for the four American soldiers who went “missing” after their armored vehicle was found “submerged” in Lithuania, according to the US Army.
Four US Army soldiers disappeared mysteriously during a training exercise in Lithuania, near the Belarus border, on Tuesday. Despite a large search, the US military has not yet confirmed their status. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s expression of condolences to their families caused some uncertainty.
The soldiers, part of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division from Fort Stewart, Georgia, were participating in a “scheduled tactical training” at the General Silvestras Zukauskas training ground in Pabrade, Lithuania, when they went missing, leading to a significant search and rescue operation.
“The M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle the four missing US Soldiers were operating during a training exercise has been located in Lithuania,” US Army Europe and Africa said in an update on Wednesday.
The armored vehicle “was discovered submerged in a body of water in a training area,” but the US military stated that “search efforts for the soldiers continue.” The Lithuanian Armed Forces also noted that “there is no evidence or information confirming the death of the troops” at this time.
Last week, the militaries of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland urged their governments to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty – an international agreement banning anti-personnel landmines – citing increased military threat from Russia as the reason.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed last year that Western countries “can’t wait” to involve Belarus in their “military squabbles,” with Minsk estimating 20,000 NATO soldiers stationed “near” the country’s borders.
Moscow has consistently denied Western claims of intending to attack NATO or EU states, with Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissing such statements as “nonsense.” He has asserted that the alleged “Russian threat” is used by European politicians to frighten citizens and justify increased military spending. Russian officials have also denounced the EU’s recent militarization efforts as reckless and escalatory.
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