Vietnam, US join efforts in dioxin cleanup, disability aid

Dong Nai, September 16 (VNA) – The Bien Hoa Air Base Dioxin Remediation Project represents a key milestone in Vietnam – US cooperation to overcome the consequences of Agent Orange/dioxin, fulfilling commitments in the 2023 Joint Statement on upgrading bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for peace and sustainable development.

Deputy Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien made the remarks while presiding over some events on September 15 at Bien Hoa Air Base in the southern province of Dong Nai, including the handover of remediated land, the groundbreaking of a thermal treatment system, and the signing of a supplementary non-refundable ODA agreement to improve the lives of people with disabilities in priority provinces.

At the ceremony, representatives of the US Embassy in Vietnam granted the certification of the cleanup of about six hectares of land at Bien Hoa. Nearly half of the contaminated areas inside and around the air base have now been remediated and transferred to the Air Defence – Air Force Service and local authorities for socio-economic and defence purposes.

Vietnamese and US officials also launched construction of a thermal treatment system, described as a decisive technology for ensuring the project’s success. Sen. Lt. Gen. Chien, who heads the Standing Office of the National Steering Committee on post-war bomb and toxic chemical consequences, reaffirmed Vietnam’s commitment to complete remediation at Bien Hoa by 2030.

On this occasion, US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper and Major General Nguyen Dinh Hien, Commander of the Chemical Corps and Director General of the National Action Centre for Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Treatment (NACCET), signed an agreement on an additional 32 million USD in non-refundable ODA from the US to expand disability support programmes in areas heavily affected by dioxin.

Launched in 2021 across six provinces and cities, the project has already supported more than 32,000 people with disabilities, including AO/dioxin victims, meeting over 60% of its targets. It will soon be extended to Ca Mau and Quang Ngai provinces.

Ambassador Knapper stressed that the handover of cleaned land and the launch of the new treatment system reflect the joint determination of Vietnam and the US to address wartime legacies and foster sustainable development cooperation.-VNA