Vietnam expects additional US assistance to wartime dioxin victims
VOV.VN - State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, who is in New York for the 76th UN General Assembly, received US friends of Vietnam led by Merle Ratner, Coordinator of the US-based Vietnam Agent Orange (AO) Relief and Responsibility Campaign, on September 21.
He thanked the US friends for practical activities they have carried out over the years to assist victims of Agent Orange/dioxin and landmines left over from the Vietnam War.
The President noted that after more than 25 years of diplomatic normalization, the Vietnam – US relations have developed substantially on the principle of respecting national independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity as well as political institutions of each other.
However, he said more than five decades have elapsed since the end of the war, Vietnamese people are still suffering the heavy consequences of landmines, unexploded ordnance and Agent Orange.
Among approximately 4.8 million people exposed to Agent Orange/dioxin, hundreds of thousands are enduring serious illnesses. Notably, Agent Orange/dioxin has been passed on to the fourth generation, causing sequelae such as polio, blindness, dumbness, deafness, intellectual disability, mental retardation, cancer and birth defects.
President Phuc affirmed that the Party and State of Vietnam pay special attention to overcoming war consequences, including alleviating the victims’ sufferings, considering this as both a long-term, important and urgent issue at present.
He highly appreciated the US’s commitment and support in dealing with war consequences, actively contributing to tireless trust building efforts from both sides.
US Congress has allocated part of its budget to assist the victims, including implementing dioxin remediation projects at Da Nang and Bien Hoa airports. The US Agency for International Development has granted US$92.5 million to support people with disabilities in dioxin affected areas.
President Phuc expressed his hope that the US friends would continue to support the friendship and cooperation between the two countries, especially in dealing with the consequences of Agent Orange/dioxin.
For her part, Merle Ratner said that she has worked hard for many years to lobby the US Government to fulfill its responsibility toward Agent Orange/dioxin victims in Vietnam, by assisting the victims in all aspects, from health care and vocational training to dioxin remediation. She assured Phuc that she would continue to do all she can to support Vietnamese Agent Orange/dioxin victims in the future.
Merle Ratner is an American citizen born in New York. She used to take to the streets to protest against the Vietnam War when she was 13. She is currently the Coordinator of the US-based Vietnam Agent Orange (AO) Relief and Responsibility Campaign.