Four American soldiers are still missing in Lithuania. National Defence Minister Dovile Sakaliene says "all scenarios" are still being considered regarding their fate.
The soldiers went missing during an exercise at Pabrade, a training ground about 15 kilometres away from the Belarussian border. Their M88 Hercules recovery vehicle had sank about five metres into a swamp but Sakaliene could not confirm whether or not their bodies were inside.
The vehicle needs to be extracted before any confirmation can be made, she explained.
"All scenarios are still being considered…We cannot confirm if the soldiers are inside the vehicle," she told reporters after a visit to Pabrade.
"The Americans also informed us that they continued their search operations throughout the night, as all scenarios remain possible until we see the vehicle."
'Spare no effort'
Lithuanian authorities were informed of the soldiers' disappearance on Tuesday. A large-scale rescue operation involving hundreds of personnel was launched.
Extensive work was carried out overnight to drain the area where the vehicle sank, and rescuers constructed a new road to allow access for heavy equipment.
"The water level has also been sufficiently lowered to begin excavation," Sakaliene noted, mentioning that the vehicle extraction process could take several days.
"You all know how important is the presence of US troops in Lithuania," Lithuanian Chief of Defence Raimundas Vaiksnoras stated. "Their soldiers are like our soldiers to us. So we spare no effort to find them."
