HANOI, Vietnam - Vietnamese and U.S. scientists wrapped up their annual meetings on Agent Orange on Thursday, launching a task force to examine health issues in areas where the defoliant was used during the Vietnam War.
The panel will begin by focusing on programs to aid the disabled in Danang, a city on the central coast where troops used to mix, store and load Agent Orange onto planes at a former U.S. base, now the site of the Danang airport.
The task force will advise the bilateral Joint Advisory Committee on Agent Orange, which just wrapped up its fourth annual meeting, as it seeks ways to aid the disabled in "hotspots" where the herbicide was stored during the war.
The committee has already appointed another task force to advise it on environmental issues related to the clean up of the sites.
U.S. troops sprayed Agent Orange on jungles to deprive Vietnamese troops of ground cover. Vietnam says 1 million to 4 million of its citizens may have suffered serious health consequences after being exposed to dioxin, a highly toxic element in Agent Orange.
The U.S. says the actual number is substantially lower and more scientific study is needed to determine possible links between Agent Orange and health problems suffered by the Vietnamese.
After years of disagreement, the two sides began co-operating more closely in 2006 to address problems linked to the herbicide.
Their efforts received a jolt of momentum in November of that year when then President George W. Bush and Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet signed an agreement committing the former foes to work together on addressing dioxin contamination in Vietnam.
Since then the U.S. Congress has set aside $6 million to address the legacy of Agent Orange, perhaps the most contentious issue remaining from the Vietnam War.
Several non-profit groups and international donors are also contributing to the effort.
