4 U.S. Soldiers Missing in Lithuania
Lithuania, a member of NATO, has recently been at the head of some controversy. 4 U.S. soldiers, who were based in Fort Stewart, went missing while on a maintenance mission. Riding in a M88 Hercules, the soldiers were last seen near Pabradė and are currently still unaccounted for. This remains an ongoing search with neighboring NATO countries like Poland sending equipment to aid in the search and recovery of these men.
Lithuania’s Defense Minister Dovilė Šakalienė has stated in an interview with Fox News that they have “given everything” while on this continuous search for the U.S. troops. In regard to the search, she said, “Our society is heartbroken watching every single moment of this rescue operation.” The country is using helicopters and thermal vision to try and locate the missing soldiers in the surrounding area where they were last presumed to be in. The M88 Hercules, the vehicle that they were driving in, was found submerged in a body of slush and water. This planned retrieval of the Hercules won’t be easy due to the wet and muddy conditions. The environment is often compared to that of Alaska because of its wet swamps and muddy marshes. Pressurized gas also halted the recovery until it was removed from the site which granted access to teams waiting to begin the digging. Hydraulic machines have been dispatched by Polish authorities to clear the water out of the area. The internal water waste agency dispatched pipelines to be installed as well as a water master dredger to remove the watery slush. If all goes according to plans, on Saturday, they plan to drain the water and send a diving team to locate the M88 Hercules. Divers plan on attaching a cable and then pulleys will bring the vehicle to the surface, which should solve the mystery. Though they have located the vehicle, authorities are unsure of the condition or position that the Hercules is in.
Poland, an ally of the U.S., has sent ground troops as well as heavy equipment to the site. Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz posted on X that their equipment and troops were heading to Lithuania.
Donald Trump recently responded to reporters saying that he hadn’t been briefed in the matter of the missing soldiers. The U.S. Ambassador and U.S. army personnel have been in close contact with Lithuanian forces. According to the U.S. Ambassador, Kara MacDonald, the Lithuanian forces have been working “tirelessly” to find the lost American soldiers. The families of the missing soldiers are being updated on the status of the operation.
A possibility is that the soldiers escaped the Hercules before it sank but no evidence has provided any details regarding that scenario. Coincidentally, Belarus, a strong Russian ally, is less than 6 miles from the site.
Lithuania held a joint prayer and mass on Sunday March 30 for all the missing U.S. soldiers.