The event attracted the participation of officials from both Vietnam and the US, including Deputy Minister of Defence cum Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien; Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Ha Kim Ngoc; leaders from the Vietnam National Steering Committee on the Settlement of Post-war Unexploded Ordnance and Toxic Chemical Consequences (Committee 701); Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations cum Senator Patrick Leahy; and USIP President and CEO Lise Grande; among others.
In her welcoming remark, USIP President and CEO Lise Grande said that the event provided an opportunity for US and Vietnamese agencies, managers, scientists and experts to understand the outstanding achievements of Vietnam-US cooperation and identify future orientations to promote bilateral cooperation in addressing the consequences of post-war bombs and mines as well as in searching for soldiers missing in action (MIA) in the war in Vietnam.
Senator Patrick Leahy highly appreciated the cooperation between the two countries in settling war aftermaths. He also stressed the importance of the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in searching, gathering and identifying the remains of Vietnamese martyrs, which was inked during the recent Vietnam visit by US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on July 29, as the MoU has opened up a new chapter in the cooperation in overcoming war aftermaths between the two countries.
For his part, Deputy Minister of Defence Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien spoke highly of the US’s commitment to providing support for Vietnam in overcoming war aftermaths, particularly the detoxification of the Bien Hoa Airport area in Dong Nai Province.
He stressed that the outcomes in bilateral cooperation have contributed to building trust between the two countries.
He expressed his hope that the US functional agencies will continue to cooperate more closely with Vietnam in overcoming the consequences of landmines and toxic chemicals/dioxins.
He affirmed that he would direct Vietnamese relevant agencies to closely coordinate with each other and with US partners to effectively implement important cooperation contents between Vietnam and the US.
