A U.S. Army officer was not captured in Ukraine

It has been almost six weeks since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale attack on Ukraine. As of 3 April, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) records Across the country, 1,417 Ukrainians were killed and 2,038 injured. Horrific footage from Bucha and stories of the deadly attacks in Mariupol dominated the news around the world.

On April 7, Ukraine appealed to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for additional weapons to help fight Russia. NATO is an international organization of 30 member states.

Putin has historically been opposed to NATO’s involvement in Eastern Europe, especially in the former Soviet Union. Ukraine became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991 is not a member of NATO.

After the invasion, NATO said it would not send troops to Ukraine and police to the no-fly zone because it could escalate the conflict with Russia. Some participating countries supply air and anti-tank weapons, as well as equipment and medical supplies.

Although NATO has said it will not send troops, users online shared rumors that the commander of NATO Allied Forces and Lieutenant General of the US Army Roger L. Clutier Jr. was recently in Ukraine and was captured by Russian troops in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol.

Lieutenant General of the US Army Roger L. Clutier Jr. was captured in Ukraine by the Russian army?

No, U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Clutier was not captured in Ukraine. A NATO spokesman said VERIFY Cloutier had not been in Ukraine since July 2021.

U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Roger L. Clutier Jr., who also commanded NATO Allied Ground Commanddenied allegations that he was abducted in Ukraine in the comments section of the post on his LinkedIn page.

In response to a man’s question as to whether he could comment on reports that he and others had been captured by the Russian military, Wrote Clutier“These rumors are absolutely false.” VERIFY contacted Cloutier on LinkedIn but received no response.

On April 5, Clutier hosted the NATO Working Group on Ground Operations in Izmir, Turkey, NATO told VERIFY in an email. He was never captured and “alive and well,” the email said. Cloutier took command NATO Allied Ground Command in August 2020. U.S. officers may serve as NATO commanders.

Clutier’s last visit to Ukraine was a visit to Kyiv in July 2021, NATO told VERIFY. This was before the Russian invasion.

Photos of Clutier performing at the event in Izmir on April 5, 2022 can be seen on official Facebook and Twitter accounts for NATO Allied Ground Command.

VERIFY also confirmed that a group photo posted on the social network of the Allied Ground Command was taken from Komhuriet Boulevard in Izmir by comparing the buildings in the background of the photo with the images on Google Maps.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.