VILNIUS - The rescue operation at the Pabrade training area in Lithuania's Svencionys District continues after the US military armored vehicle was pulled out of a swamp, Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas says.
"The vehicle retrieval has been completed, but the operation continues," he told reporters on Monday after his meeting with President Gitanas Nauseda, refraining to elaborate on the nature of the ongoing operation.
For his part, colonel Ausrius Buikus, who was in charge of the vehicle pullout operation, told reporters earlier that the scope of the operation to pull out the vehicle and rescue the troops had been somewhat slowed down.
"The scope of the operation is on hold until we get confirmation on the continuation or completion of the operation," he said.
Lithuanian officials are yet to reveal whether the bodies of the four American soldiers were found inside the recovered M88 Hercules tracked recovery vehicle, saying that the families of the soldiers in the US must first be contacted and informed of the situation, and only then the latest information will be made public.
BNS reported earlier the vehicle, operated by the four US soldiers, went missing during an exercise at the Pabrade military training area in Svencionys District last Tuesday. It was found on Wednesday at a depth of about five meters in a swampy area.
In a large-scale rescue operation involving Lithuanian, US, and Polish military personnel, as well as specialists from other Lithuanian services, the armored vehicle was pulled out early Monday morning.
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