Donald Trump gives bizarre response when asked about four US Army soldiers who went missing after training mission
Donald Trump is facing some backlash after giving a bizarre response in regards to the missing US Army soldiers.
The soldiers from the 1st Brigade of the 3rd Infantry Division, as well as their M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle, reportedly vanished as of Tuesday (March 25) after a tactical training exercise in Pabradė, near the border of Belarus in Lithuania.
A widespread manhunt was launched with hundreds of personnel from the US Army and Lithuanian Armed Forces to try to find them.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte suggested on Wednesday (March 26) that the four soldiers had died, with speculation that they had drowned when their armored vehicle got into tough terrain, reports NY Post.
Advert
“Whilst I was speaking the news came out about four American soldiers who were killed in an incident in Lithuania. This is still early news so we do not know the details,” Rutte told reporters while in Warsaw, Poland. “This is really terrible news and our thoughts are with the families and loved ones.”
However, NATO has since clarified that the soldiers are not confirmed to be dead.
NATO clarified in a statement on Twitter that the search 'is ongoing' and apologized for any 'any confusion' made by the chief civil servant.
"We regret any confusion about remarks @SecGenNATO delivered on this today. He was referring to emerging news reports & was not confirming the fate of the missing, which is still unknown."
And now, when asked by reporters if he had been briefed about the missing soldiers, President Trump claimed he knew nothing about it.
He replied: "No, I haven't."
The POTUS' blunt reply has since sparked outrage from residents across the US and his critics, with many taking to social media to slam his response as 'appalling.'
Commenting on Trump's apparent indifference about the question, another wrote on Twitter: "Didn't even seem a bit concerned! Bro just shrugged it off for the next question right away."
A second wrote: "And not have the decency to at least fake giving a damn?"
"Because he's not the President," another said. "Putin and Elon are running the show."
A fourth chimed: "If Trump doesn't care enough about American soldiers to know if they are dead or alive, why is he the commander-in-chief? Imagine how appalled Republicans would be if Biden gave the same inept answer!"
CNN political commentator, Alyssa Farah Griffin, also wrote: "How has [Secretary of Defense] Hegseth not briefed POTUS on the missing US soldiers in Lithuania? This has been in the public domain for 8+ hours."
The soldiers' Hercules was found 'submerged in a body of water' of around 15 feet deep near the training area (prompting the speculation of drowning), Lithuanian Defence Minister Dovilė Šakalienė confirmed, which has been the focus of the search.
The boggy terrain has since been drained and pumped which the minister said is showing some 'positive signs.'
As it stands, there is 'no guarantee' that soldiers were on board the vehicle when it entered the water, he continued, and stated there is 'no evidence or information confirming any casualties.'
The US has been in the Baltic region since 2014 in the wake of Russia's invasion of Crimea with Lithuania welcoming hundreds of US troops on a rotational basis before establishing the military camp in Pabrade in August 2021, reports CNN.
Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are all also NATO members and have a somewhat rocky relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, an ally of Belarus, since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1990.
Relations have soured further what with Lithuanian president, Gitanas Nausėda, supporting Ukraine against its Russian invaders in 2022.
Topics: Donald Trump, Europe, Military, Politics, Russia, Social Media, Twitter, US News, Ukraine, Vladimir Putin, World News
Liv Bridge