More than a thousand people gathered in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, on Thursday to honor the four U.S. servicemen who tragically lost their lives in a swamp at a training ground in eastern Lithuania.
The soldiers disappeared last week when their M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle became trapped in boggy terrain at the Pabradė training ground while attempting to repair and tow an immobilized tactical vehicle.
After a week-long search and rescue operation involving Lithuanian, U.S., Polish and Estonian troops, the armored vehicle containing the bodies of three soldiers was pulled from the swamp on Monday. The body of the fourth drowned soldier was found on Tuesday.
On Thursday, a ceremony honoring the soldiers was organized by the Lithuanian Defense Ministry, the U.S. consulate in Lithuania and the organization Strong Together.
More than a thousand people, carrying Lithuanian and U.S. flags, gathered in Cathedral Square and along Gedimino Avenue in Vilnius to pay their respects.
The procession carrying the remains of the servicemen first stopped at Cathedral Square, where Archbishop of Vilnius Gintaras Grušas, President Gitanas Nausėda and other high-ranking Lithuanian officials met it, and the cathedral bells were rung. The cortege then headed for Vilnius Airport, where the remains will be flown back to the U.S.
Meanwhile, a fundraising campaign for the families of the dead U.S. soldiers, initiated by Lithuania’s private news channel Laisvės TV, has raised over €200,000.
The servicemen, permanently stationed at Fort Stewart, Georgia, were deployed to Lithuania as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, a NATO mission aimed at deterring Russian aggression against member states following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The U.S. has a significant military presence in Eastern Europe, including the Baltic states.
After a week-long search and rescue operation involving Lithuanian, U.S., Polish and Estonian troops, the armored vehicle containing the bodies of three soldiers was pulled from the swamp on Monday. The body of the fourth drowned soldier was found on Tuesday.
On Thursday, a ceremony honoring the soldiers was organized by the Lithuanian Defense Ministry, the U.S. consulate in Lithuania and the organization Strong Together.
More than a thousand people, carrying Lithuanian and U.S. flags, gathered in Cathedral Square and along Gedimino Avenue in Vilnius to pay their respects.
The procession carrying the remains of the servicemen first stopped at Cathedral Square, where Archbishop of Vilnius Gintaras Grušas, President Gitanas Nausėda and other high-ranking Lithuanian officials met it, and the cathedral bells were rung. The cortege then headed for Vilnius Airport, where the remains will be flown back to the U.S.
Meanwhile, a fundraising campaign for the families of the dead U.S. soldiers, initiated by Lithuania’s private news channel Laisvės TV, has raised over €200,000.
The servicemen, permanently stationed at Fort Stewart, Georgia, were deployed to Lithuania as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, a NATO mission aimed at deterring Russian aggression against member states following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The U.S. has a significant military presence in Eastern Europe, including the Baltic states.
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