Timothy Rieser, senior advisor at the US Senate Appropriations Committee (Photo: VNA)Washington, D.C., (VNA) – The Vietnam-UScooperation in addressing war aftermaths is considered a bright spot inbilateral relations, which have reaped remarkable achievements in many aspects.
The Vietnam News Agency correspondents inWashington interviewed Timothy Rieser, senior advisor at the US SenateAppropriations Committee, on the US’s support for Vietnam in resolving warconsequences, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Vietnam-USdiplomatic relations.
Riese recalled that discussions about how theUS could help Vietnam in dealing with post-war consequences began as early as1990, especially in supporting people affected by unexploded ordnance left by war,noting that it was the beginning of the 30-year bilateral cooperation inresolving war aftermaths.
It is also the start of bilateral ties which laterdeveloped into a comprehensive partnership in all realms, he said.
According to Riese, the bilateral cooperation inthis field has expanded to eight provinces in Vietnam, also covering supportfor people with disabilities due to indirect or direct exposure to Agent Orange(AO)/dioxin.
The US and Vietnamese governments haveeffectively cooperated in the decontamination of the most heavily contaminatedareas of dioxin, first at Da Nang airport in the central city of Da Nang, andnow at Bien Hoa airport in the southern province of Dong Nai, he added.
In recent years, the US has also received greatassistance from Vietnam in searching for US soldiers missing in action (MIA)during wartime, he said, adding that this cooperation is extremely important.
He revealed that the US will for the first timeprovide through its Department of Defence about 2.5 million USD for the MIAproject, helping Vietnam to seek its soldiers missing in action during the war.
In addition, the two sides are also seekingcooperation opportunities for other issues such as security, climate change,energy, food, education, media and technology, he added./.
VNA
