Four US soldiers were found dead during military drills in Lithuania next to the border with Belarus.
According to 15min.lt and LRT, they first went missing during military exercises in Lithuania at the Pabradė training ground, which is close to the border with Belarus. Later, the disappearance of four US soldiers along with a tracked vehicle was officially confirmed.
After a large-scale search and rescue operation, two unrelated sources confirmed to 15min.lt that the soldiers had died, likely as a result of entering a body of water. Sources from LRT also claim that the soldiers most likely died. It is believed they were traveling in an M88 armored recovery vehicle.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the US Armed Forces in Europe and Africa informed the media that the soldiers’ bodies had not yet been found.
Lithuanian and foreign troops, as well as helicopters from the Air Force and the Border Guard Service, were involved in the search since Tuesday.The US Armed Forces clarified that the missing soldiers were members of the 3rd Infantry Division, 1st Brigade.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas said he would not comment on the incident yet.
“For now, I will not comment on this information, an investigation is ongoing, but the information will be summarized and communicated to the public when it becomes certain,” the Prime Minister told journalists in Vilnius.
