The Online Dialogue on the Legacy of War and Peace in Vietnam - Laos - Cambodia organized by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington on September 14 (US time) had the participation of many speakers, including US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper; Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh, President of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange - Dioxin; US Senator Jeff Merkley; Acting Director of the Diplomatic Academy (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) Pham Lan Dung...

The dialogue was held right after the very successful State visit of US President Joe Biden to Vietnam.

In his opening remarks, Senator Jeff Merkley expressed his sadness at the news of the passing of Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh , former Deputy Minister of National Defense of Vietnam. The Senator emphasized the role of Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh in fostering and strengthening the relationship between Vietnam and the United States, especially in the dioxin remediation projects that the two countries are implementing.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh presented Senator Patrick Leahy with a box of dioxin-decontaminated soil from Da Nang airport during his visit to the 2019 Vietnam-US Defense Policy Dialogue. Photo: VNA

Mr. Jeff Merkley quoted the statement of Senator Patrick Leahy, former President of the US Senate, who said that since Mr. Vinh took on the position of Deputy Secretary of Defense in 2009, he has made many contributions to the relationship between the two countries.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh is one of Senator Patrick Leahy's key partners in promoting the handling of dioxin contamination and detoxification at the Da Nang airport area. These contributions have contributed to further strengthening the bilateral relationship between the two countries as they "heal the past and look to the future".

Senator Patrick Leahy expressed his gratitude to Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh for his reception during his visits to Vietnam.

"Every effort played an important role in the cooperation between the two countries. General Vinh in particular was one of the leading people. We will miss him very much," said Senator Jeff Merkley.

Mr. Jeff Merkley said that last April he had the honor of leading a delegation of US congressmen to visit Vietnam, during which the delegation also promoted cooperation between the two countries in overcoming the consequences of war. He said he wanted to continue the efforts and "legacies" of Mr. Patrick Leahy and Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh in overcoming the consequences of war and dioxin detoxification in Vietnam.

Dioxin has had a harmful impact on the Vietnamese people for many generations, in many regions of Vietnam. During the Vietnam War, the US stored many of these substances at airports and they leaked at some airports such as Da Nang and Bien Hoa.

Mr. Jeff Merkley praised the contributions of Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh in completing the detoxification of Da Nang airport. The US and Vietnam are continuing the detoxification project at Bien Hoa airport, which will require at least 10 years and half a billion USD to detoxify and renovate the area around this airport.

Mr. Merkley said: "We cannot change history, but together we will build a better future. This is a good and meaningful saying for the two countries in healing after the war. On the one hand, we must ease the pain caused by war, on the other hand, we must promote many positive things that both sides do together."

He believes that we must stick to the path we have outlined in the detoxification of Bien Hoa airport, even if it takes a long time.

The Bien Hoa airport detoxification project is being continued by the two countries. (Photo of the handover ceremony of the dioxin-treated site in the southwest area of ​​Bien Hoa airport in March, author: HA)

Launched in August 2012, the dioxin remediation project at Da Nang airport funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is considered an important milestone in the bilateral relationship between the two governments, helping to improve the environment to be cleaner and safer for the people of Da Nang.

The project was completed in 2018, successfully treating more than 90,000m3 of contaminated soil and sediment using thermal desorption and safely isolating 50,000m3 of low-concentration dioxin-contaminated soil and sediment.

The dioxin remediation project at Bien Hoa airport began in April 2019, with a scale four times larger than the dioxin remediation project at Da Nang airport. The project is expected to take 10 years to complete.

Last March, USAID handed over 29,383 square meters of dioxin remediation area southwest of Bien Hoa airport to the Air Defense - Air Force Service (Vietnam Ministry of National Defense).

Vietnamnet.vn