Ceremony held to repatriate remains believed to be of U.S. servicemen

The event, the 166th of its kind, saw the attendance of representatives from the Vietnam Office for Seeking Missing Persons (VNOSMP), the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, National Defense, and Public Security of Vietnam, and the People's Committee of Khanh Hoa province. On the U.S. side were U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper, and representatives of the U.S. MIA Office in Hanoi.

At the handover ceremony on July 16

The VNOSMP handed over the sets of remains to the U.S. side. The remains were recovered during the 155th joint field activities that took place from May to July this year in the central province of Khanh Hoa.

The remains were examined by Vietnamese and U.S. forensic experts who concluded they might be associated with U.S. servicemen missing during the war in Vietnam.

Cooperation in searching for and repatriating remains of U.S. MIAs has been carried out as soon as the Paris Peace Accords was signed on January 27, 1973. Over the past more than 50 years, Vietnam has handed over to the U.S. more than 1,000 sets of remains and helped the U.S. identify over 730 MIAs. The humanitarian activity has contributed to healing the wounds of war, building trust and promoting the development of the Vietnam-U.S. ties.

Source: VNA