US increases funding to clean up Agent Orange contamination in Vietnam
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The United States government committed an additional $91 million to Vietnam’s efforts to remediate dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa Airbase and to improve the lives of people with disabilities, bringing total funding for these projects to $156 million.
In Hanoi on Wednesday, officials from Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defence and the U.S. Embassy signed an agreement outlining the expanded scope of work.
The Bien Hoa project, which began in 2019, aims to address the lasting effects of Agent Orange, a defoliant used during the Vietnam War. So far, the project has cleaned 41 hectares of land at the airbase, and by 2031, it expects to treat approximately 500,000 cubic meters of contaminated soil. Vietnam’s Air Defense-Air Force Service will continue to work with U.S. agencies to ensure the project stays on schedule and meets safety standards.
Alongside the environmental cleanup, the increased funding will support programs improving quality of life for people with disabilities in six Vietnamese provinces and cities heavily affected by Agent Orange. Vietnam also contributed VND353 billion (about $13.6 million) to the projects. Both countries expressed a commitment to resolving wartime issues, with Vietnam requesting further assistance from the U.S. in locating and identifying remains of Vietnamese soldiers.
