Four American Soldiers Who Died in Lithuania Military Training Mission Honored with State Tribute

Four American Soldiers Who Died in Lithuania Military Training Mission Honored with State Tribute

Vilnius, Lithuania — On Thursday, political and religious leaders of Lithuania joined thousands of people to bid farewell to four American soldiers who were killed during a training exercise in Lithuania.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda and other prominent figures were among those standing in tribute as the hearses, carrying the bodies of the four young American soldiers, made their way to Vilnius Airport, from where they would be taken back to the United States for their funeral.

Many onlookers stood with tears in their eyes, and Nausėda said that the public and military response to the soldiers' untimely departure was related to Lithuania's own difficult history.

"For us, this is not just a duty; it’s a feeling. We have gone through many trials in our history, and so we understand very well what it means to lose, what it means to die, what it means to honor a responsibility," Nausėda said.

Students, waving both the Lithuanian and American flags, paid their respects to the soldiers who died in an accident on NATO's eastern front, a region that has been tense due to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Leading a group was Justin Boyd, the principal of the American International School of Vilnius, who said, "We are here to honor the fallen soldiers of the United States and to respect the relationship between Lithuania and the U.S. and the defense treaty it represents."

These soldiers, part of the 3rd Infantry Division's 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, were participating in a tactical training exercise when they and their vehicle went missing a week ago, the U.S. Army reported.

Lithuania, Poland, and U.S. soldiers and rescuers, led by General Silvestras Žukauskas, began searching in the forest and wetlands of the training area, located 10 kilometers west of the town of Pabradė, 6 miles from the Belarus border. On Monday, the M88 Hercules armored vehicle was pulled from a swamp, and the final body was recovered on Tuesday.

A mourner from Pabradė town said, "I am sorry for these young men. I live close by, and I know that swamp. It’s a dangerous place, and anyone entering there is at risk."

The U.S. Army has identified the soldiers: Staff Sergeant Troy S. Knudson-Collins, 28, Battle Creek, Michigan; Staff Sergeant Jose Duinez Jr., 25, Joliet, Illinois; Staff Sergeant Edwin F. Franco, 25, Glendale, California; and PFC Dante D. Taitano, 21, Dededo, Guam.

Around 3,500 soldiers from the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team were sent in January for a nine-month rotation to Poland and the Baltic States, as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve to support NATO allies and partners after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.