Poland will urgently deploy dozens of soldiers, equipped with heavy weaponry and combat vehicles, to assist in the search for missing U.S. military personnel in Lithuania.
Polish Minister of Defense, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, confirmed the deployment, stating that Polish soldiers will be sent to Lithuania to aid in locating the American soldiers.
“A task force of dozens of soldiers with heavy weaponry and combat vehicles is urgently heading to Lithuania to assist in finding the American soldiers and recovering the combat vehicle. We are responding to the requests of our allies,” said Minister Kosiniak-Kamysz.
The U.S. soldiers disappeared on March 25 while participating in exercises near the Belarusian border. They were traveling in a Hercules M88 armored vehicle, which was later found submerged in a water body. However, the soldiers’ bodies have not been recovered, and their deaths have not yet been confirmed.
“The search continues,” NATO’s statement said.
The ongoing search and rescue operation involves Lithuanian forces, foreign military units, and helicopters from the Lithuanian Air Force and the State Border Guard Service.
Polish Chief of General Staff, General Wesław Kukula, expressed solidarity, saying: “We have offered our support and will continue to assist our allies in this extremely difficult search and rescue operation. The soldiers of this unit are well-known to us. They have also repeatedly stood side by side with us in defending our country.”
