Vietnam, US continue cooperation on environmental remediation at Bien Hoa airbase
Friday, 10/11/2017 10:02 (GMT+7)
(CPV) - US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas A. Shannon Jr. on November 9th joined Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Phuong Nam, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the People’s Army of Vietnam, in a ceremony marking the successful environmental remediation of dioxin project at the Da Nang airport.
The two sides first launched the project in 2012, which culminated in the treatment of more than 90,000 cubic meters of contaminated material and contained another 60,000 cubic meters of lower risk material.
Caption: Under Secretary Shannon and Senior Lieutenant General Nam discuss the successful collaboration in Environmental Remediation of Dioxin at Da Nang airport. (Photo: US Embassy Hanoi)
The US official stated that the Da Nang airport project stands as a symbol of the growing bilateral partnership and demonstrates how both countries can turn past issues of contention into new areas of cooperation. He also highlighted it has enabled this city to build an airport extension that will bring new prosperity and growth to the Vietnamese people.
In anticipation of President Donald Trump’s visit to Vietnam, Under Secretary Shannon announced that his country is committed to contribute to joint US-Vietnam dioxin remediation efforts at the Bien Hoa airbase.
A US-Vietnam joint environmental assessment in 2016 found that the volume of dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa airbase makes it the largest dioxin hot spot in Vietnam, highlighting the significance of this next area of cooperation.
Besides, high-ranking officials said that the two sides would cross the threshold together into a shared future of prosperity and peace as they close the door on a painful wartime legacy and open the door into a new era of partnership./.
ATP