Recovery efforts continue for four missing U.S. soldiers near the spot where their Hercules armored vehicle was found submerged at a training range in Pabrade, north of the capital Vilnius, Lithuania on Thursday, March 27, 2025. (Mindaugas Kulbis/AP)
This report has been updated to reflect new comments from the U.S. Army and NATO.
A submerged armored vehicle used by four missing U.S. soldiers in Lithuania has been recovered, according to U.S. Army officials who say the search is ongoing for the troops involved in the accident.
The M88 Hercules vehicle was pulled from a body of water at a training site where the U.S. soldiers were operating early Tuesday morning when they went missing, U.S. Army Europe and Africa said in a statement.
“Search efforts for the soldiers continue,” USAREUR-AF said.
The Army statement follows comments made earlier Wednesday by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who told reporters in Warsaw, Poland that he had seen reports that the soldiers had perished in the accident. Rutte said he didn’t know any additional details.
However, NATO late Wednesday walked back Rutte’s statement and said that the search for the soldiers continues.
Rutte was “referring to emerging news reports and was not confirming the fate of the missing, which is still unknown,” NATO said.
The incident has sparked a search and rescue operation by American and Lithuanian authorities. The Army has not indicated whether it believes the missing soldiers are still alive.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday that the military “will not rest until our troops are found.”
The terrain in Lithuania and other parts of the Baltic countries can be boggy and pose challenges for heavy vehicles.
All of the soldiers were from 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, a rotational unit deployed to NATO’s eastern flank, U.S. Army Europe and Africa said in statement.
USAREUR-AF confirmed that the soldiers went missing in the early morning hours Tuesday during tactical training.
The search and rescue operation involves U.S. Army and Lithuanian authorities searched at a military site near the city of Pabradė, Army officials said.
The city is about six miles from the border with Belarus.
“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, V Corps commanding general, said in a 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.”
The 3rd Infantry Division in a statement Wednesday said that “our thoughts and prayers are with our Raider Brigade Soldiers and Families during the search for our four missing Dogface Soldiers in Lithuania.”
The 1st Armored Brigade was among the first units to deploy to Europe in the aftermath of Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The unit returned to the Continent in January to begin another nine-month rotation. Units within the brigade train in Lithuania, Poland and other parts of NATO’s eastern flank.
