The meeting aimed to accelerate cooperation with the U.S. in receiving historical data and mobilizing resources for the search, collection and identification of martyrs’ remains under the “500-day campaign to accelerate the search, collection and identification of martyrs’ remains.”
During the session, the VWAI research team presented the delegation with several documents concerning a mass grave of Vietnamese soldiers in the Con Tien area of Quang Tri province following a battle in 1967, as well as preliminary findings from an investigation into a mass burial site at Fire Support Base Blue in 1971.
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Sr. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Van Gau (R) and Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Michael George DeSombre |
To date, VWAI has sent more than 50 dossiers on battles and wartime artifacts to Viet Nam. The initiative, funded by the U.S. Government, was launched in 2018 at Viet Nam’s request to support efforts to search for, collect and identify Vietnamese service members missing in action during the war.
Representatives of VWAI asked the National Steering Committee to continue providing support and facilitating a return trip by a group of U.S. veterans to former battlefields in Viet Nam later this year. The veterans are expected to bring valuable information and wartime artifacts that could assist ongoing search and identification efforts.
In his remarks, Sr. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Van Gau thanked the U.S. Government, organizations and individuals, particularly VWAI members, for their effective support for Viet Nam’s efforts in this meaningful field, proposing that the U.S. continue to provide resources for dioxin remediation in Bien Hoa and Phu Cat, expand projects supporting people with disabilities, strengthen the sharing of historical data, provide DNA technology assistance, and continue close coordination in efforts to search for U.S. military personnel missing in action.
On the same day, the delegation held a meeting with U.S. Representative Chrissy Houlahan, a member of the House Armed Services Committee. During the online meeting, she affirmed that she would proactively raise Viet Nam’s funding proposals for discussion by the House appropriations subcommittees to secure additional financial resources for dioxin remediation projects and support for war victims.
Houlahan expressed her belief that maintaining close cooperation between the U.S. and Viet Nam, as well as cooperation within the ASEAN framework, would be a key factor in ensuring security, peace and sustainable development across the region.
Also on this day, the delegation held talks with Michael George DeSombre, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, focusing on coordination in searching for, verifying information about and recovering the remains of Vietnamese military personnel.
Translated by Quynh Oanh