Armys swamp tragedy shows America who our friends are

When four US Army soldiers were killed in Lithuania last week during a routine maintenance mission, we learned once again why America needs highly capable allies in Europe who share our values.Three of our closest friends — Lithuania, Poland and Estonia — jumped into the mud to help us in the grim recovery effort and bring our fallen soldiers home.The lost Americans were driving their M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle through marshy ground near Pabradė, Lithuania.Operating at night, their heavy vehicle sank into a peat bog under more than 10 feet of water and six feet of mud.The soldiers did not make it out of the M88 in time.The bogs of the Baltics are notorious for being deep, cold and treacherous.President Trump understands this area.

“The Baltics? It’s a tough neighborhood,” he recently said in the White House, adding, “We’re committed to them.”And our allies in this part of Europe are equally committed to the United States.The Baltics may be tough, but these hardened American friends hold some of the most important real estate in Europe.When things go wrong there, there’s no margin for delay.That’s why it mattered that our allies responded instantly to a new mission: Recovering America’s fallen soldiers.When the Hercules, designed to retrieve damaged vehicles, sank into the muck, America’s effort to bring home its missing soldiers required boots on the ground, a fleet of heavy machinery, and two rescue dogs from Estonia.This was an emergency — and it revealed something important: America’s alliances are not just maintained through treaties and rhetoric, but through trust, equipment, personnel and shared peril.Lithuanian and Polish soldiers and first responders did not hesitate to help, because they knew America was in need.This tragedy provides a compelling answer to Vice President JD Vance’s recent question: Does America still share core values with Europe?When America’s soldiers went missing, Lithuania, Poland and Estoni...