Four American soldiers went missing during an exercise in eastern Lithuania on Tuesday, the Lithuanian Armed Forces said on Wednesday afternoon.
According to the statement, on March 25, at 16:45, a report was received about four US soldiers and one tracked vehicle missing during a training exercise at the General Silvestras Žukauskas training area in Pabradė.
Lithuanian and foreign troops, as well as helicopters of the Air Force and the State Border Guard Service were deployed to search for the missing on the same day.
The searchers have located the possible site of the incident, according to the statement, and the search and rescue operation continues, led by the Lithuanian Armed Forces, with additional resources from the Fire and Rescue Department and other institutions.
According to LRT sources, it is believed that the four US servicemen may have been killed. This has not been officially confirmed.
Meanwhile, TV3.lt and lrytas.lt report that the four soldiers are dead and the tracked vehicle has been found in a swamp, adding, however, that official sources have not yet confirmed this.
Defence Minister Dovilė Šakalienė’s office announced on Wednesday evening that she is going to the Pabradė training ground.
“The Minister is going to the training ground to inspect the search and rescue work and to express her solidarity with the Americans,” Defence Ministry spokesman Ignas Grinevičius told BNS.
US Army Europe and Africa has also confirmed that four American soldiers are missing. The soldiers, all from 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, were conducting scheduled tactical training at the time of the incident, according to the statement.
“I would like to personally thank the Lithuanian Armed Forces and first responders who quickly came to our aid in our search operations,” Lt. Gen. Charles Costanza, the V Corps commanding general, is quoted in the statement. “It’s this kind of teamwork and support that exemplifies the importance of our partnership and our humanity regardless of what flags we wear on our shoulders.”
Earlier, the Police Department said that Vilnius officials were informed at 19:20 that three soldiers and a vehicle went missing after a training exercise at the Pabradė training ground in the District of Švenčionys in eastern Lithuania.
Major Gintautas Ciunis, a spokesman for the Lithuanian Armed Forces, told BNS that the missing persons were foreigners and did not comment further on the situation: “I can only say that they are foreign soldiers.”
The chairman of the parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defence, Giedrimas Jeglinskas, told LRT RADIO that he was aware of the disappearance, but did not provide any further information.
“There is a request from the military and the forces that were conducting the drills to exercise discretion at this time and not to make any comments. Let’s be respectful, let’s allow all the procedures to do their work. The police and all the elements that have to be involved are involved, these investigations are involved,” the politician told LRT RADIO.
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