The US Army said the bodies of three American soldiers have been found in a military vehicle that was submerged in a bog in Lithuania after it went missing during a training exercise several days ago.
"The soldiers, whose identities are being withheld pending notification of next of kin, went missing in the early morning hours of March 25 in their M88A2 Hercules armored recovery vehicle while conducting a mission to repair and tow an immobilized tactical vehicle," US Army Europe and Africa said in a statement.
The armored vehicle was retrieved earlier on March 31, six days after a rescue operation was launched at the Pabrade military training ground near Lithuania's border with Belarus.
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Bodies Of Three US Soldiers Found In Lithuania, Fourth Remains Missing
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said the search continues for a fourth US soldier who was part of the group.
US Army Europe and Africa said the soldiers were deployed to Lithuania in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve, and were permanently stationed at Fort Stewart, Georgia.
"...the search isn’t finished until everyone is home. Words cannot express our gratitude to those still working around the clock during these extensive search and recovery efforts and your unwavering commitment not to rest until all are found,” Major General Christopher Norrie said.
The missing vehicle and troops triggered a massive recovery effort involving hundreds of Lithuanian, Polish, and US personnel and dozens of vehicles.
Lithuania, a NATO and EU member, hosts more than 1,000 US troops stationed in the Baltic nation on a rotational basis.
In the early hours of the rescue operation, several conflicting accounts emerged, including comments from NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that the soldiers were dead.
A NATO spokeswoman later walked back those comments.
U.S. Army and Lithuanian authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.