MORE ON THE POW/MIA ISSUE -- FROM VIET NAM What follows is translated from a press communique issued by the government of Viet Nam at the end of a visit to that country during late spring by General John Vessey, special envoy of U.S. President Bill Clinton. "As agreed by both [the U.S. and Viet Nam] governments, General John Vessey, President Clinton’s special emissary to Hanoi on POW/MIA affairs, led a U.S. delegation to Hanoi April 18-19 for a full range of discussions with officials of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. While in Hanoi General Vessey paid a call on President Le Due Anh on the afternoon of April 19. Earlier, the two sides held talks on the POW/MIA issue. The Vietnamese side was led by Foreign Minister Nguyen Manh Cam and included the deputy ministers of defence, interior, and foreign affairs, as well as officials concerned with the issue of searching for American missing persons in Viet Nam. The U.S. side included representatives of the National Security Council, the Department of State, the Department of Defence, and the Joint Task Force for Accounting for Americans Missing in Action. "The U.S. side reaffirmed President Clinton’s objective of achieving the fullest possible accounting for missing American servicemen from the Viet Nam war. General Vessey stressed that the most immediate issue to be addressed was the serious concern raised in America by the document the United States had just received in Russian regarding the number of POWs held during the war. General Vessey also stressed the importance of answering the questions raised by the document and his hope that the two sides would cooperate on the matter. "Concerning the Russian document recently obtained by the American side, the Viet Nam side rejected the information contained in it as completely inaccurate and not reflecting the reality which existed during the war. At the same time the Vietnamese side expressed its willingness to assist the United States regarding this matter. To this end, the Vietnamese side arranged for General Vessey to meet with retired Lieutenant General Tran Van Quang, whose name appears on the document, as well as retired Lieutenant Colonel Doan Hanh, a former official of the POW prison. "The U.S. side expressed its appreciation for the Vietnamese government’s cooperation on this matter. In response to previous American requests, the Vietnamese side provided important documents from the archives of the Army General Political Department and other archives listing American POWs held during the war as well as American servicemen who died in captivity in southern and central Viet Nam. The U. S. side indicated that these documents will assist in its efforts to account for U.S. servicemen. They also appear to shed light on the Russian document if further analysis is required. General Vessey indicated that he would report immediately to President Clinton upon his return about all of these developments. "The two sides also carried out a full review of all areas of POW/MIA cooperation. They agreed that substantial progress is being made and agreed that further action was necessary in order to increase this progress. Both sides agreed that they would join officials of the government of Laos for trilateral talks on POW/MIA cooperation to be held May 6-8 in Hanoi. Both sides also agreed to establish a new joint team to accelerate investigation of the remaining American discrepancy cases. There was also agreement in principle on the work plan for activities to investigate cases of missing Americans during the remainder of 1993. "The Vietnamese side provided new information about other unilateral steps it has taken to assist in POW/MIA accounting. Foreign Minister Cam provided General Vessey with seven documents obtained from Vietnamese citizens, including sketches and maps of reported gravesites of American servicemen. The two sides indicated that they would investigate these reports during their next joint field investigation. At General Vessey’s request, Foreign Minister Nguyen Manh Cam also briefed the U.S. side on the results of the recently started ‘amnesty’ programme designed to induce Vietnamese citizens to turn over possible remains of U.S. servicemen which they are holding. "As a result of this effort, on 7 April the U.S. side repatriated remains associated with multiple individuals from eight wartime incidents. The Vietnamese side also provided a review of the humanitarian needs of Viet Nam for consideration by the United States. General Vessey noted this information and indicated he would convey it to President Clinton when he meets with him upon his return. General Vessey also expressed confidence that the U.S. would assist Viet Nam in its efforts to resolve the issue of Vietnamese missing in action and its war dead. "The two sides also discussed the Cambodian issue. The U.S. side reiterated the United States’ strong condemnation of recent acts of murder carried out against Vietnamese residents in Cambodia. The U.S. side also reviewed its measures to, together with other countries in the international community, halt these heinous acts. The Vietnamese side highly appraised these steps by the U.S. General Vessey expressed his appreciation to the government of Viet Nam for its cooperation and assistance provided to him during his mission." Editor’s note: In response to reader interest The Wednesday Report has covered significant developments on the POW/MIA issue. Although estimates range widely from some 19,000 to more than 47,000, it is widely acknowledged that at least 20,000 Canadians served in Viet Nam in American uniform.
Posted on: Sun, 08 Sep 2013 23:53:28 +0000
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