{ "id": "RL34761", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "RL34761", "active": false, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com, University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 414681, "date": "2012-11-30", "retrieved": "2016-06-21T21:31:54.322819", "title": "Vietnamese Victims of Agent Orange and U.S.-Vietnam Relations", "summary": "Since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, there has been a gradual warming of bilateral relations between the United States and Vietnam, culminating in the appointment of the first U.S. ambassador to Vietnam in 1996 and the granting of permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to Vietnam in 2007. Over the last three decades, many\u2014but not all\u2014of the major issues causing tension between the two nations have been resolved.\nOne major legacy of the Vietnam War that remains unresolved is the damage that Agent Orange, and its accompanying dioxin, have done to the people and the environment of Vietnam. For the last 35 years, this issue has generally been pushed to the background of bilateral discussions by other issues considered more important by the United States and/or Vietnam. With most of those issues presently resolved, the issue of Agent Orange/dioxin has emerged as a regular topic in bilateral discussions.\nIn the last few years, the United States has shown a greater willingness to fund environmental remediation activities in Vietnam. Since 2007, Congress has appropriated $59.5 million for dioxin removal and related health care activities in Vietnam. In 2012, the Senate has proposed providing an additional $20 million in the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2013 (S. 3241), but the House of Representatives has not included dioxin remediation funding in its corresponding appropriations bill, H.R. 5857. The Vietnamese government and people would like to see the United States do more to provide help for victims of Agent Orange, as well as assist with the cleanup of other Agent Orange \u201chot spots.\u201d \nAccording to various estimates, the U.S. military sprayed approximately 11 million-12 million gallons of Agent Orange over nearly 10% of then-South Vietnam between 1961 and 1971. One scientific study estimated that between 2.1 million and 4.8 million Vietnamese were directly exposed to Agent Orange. Vietnamese advocacy groups claim that there are over 3 million Vietnamese suffering from health problems caused by exposure to the dioxin in Agent Orange.\nThe people of Vietnam have become increasingly concerned about the issue of Agent Orange. Various non-government organizations are placing more pressure on the Vietnamese government to remove the dioxin from the environment and provide better care to the people exposed to Agent Orange. Some government ministries are comparatively sympathetic to the public concern about Agent Orange, but other ministries are apprehensive that highlighting the dangers of dioxin could have undesired consequences for bilateral relations or for Vietnam\u2019s economy.\nThis report examines various estimates of the effects of Agent Orange on Vietnam\u2019s people and environment, the history of U.S. policy on the issue, the current cleanup efforts in Vietnam, the various forms of assistance\u2014including U.S. governmental assistance\u2014provided to people with medical conditions associated with dioxin exposure, and the implications for bilateral relations. It concludes with a brief discussion of possible congressional responses to the issue. \nThis report will be updated as conditions warrant.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/RL34761", "sha1": "89f8b6190166d2c7324c09a77544bc4dc65ba2ce", "filename": "files/20121130_RL34761_89f8b6190166d2c7324c09a77544bc4dc65ba2ce.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/RL34761", "sha1": "7dc2e5d4e5c8a2b366ee499cd853e2508ec94821", "filename": "files/20121130_RL34761_7dc2e5d4e5c8a2b366ee499cd853e2508ec94821.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc122330/", "id": "RL34761_2012Aug29", "date": "2012-08-29", "retrieved": "2012-11-30T09:28:34", "title": "Vietnamese Victims of Agent Orange and U.S.-Vietnam Relations", "summary": "This report examines various estimates of the effects of Agent Orange on Vietnam's people and environment, the history of U.S. policy on the issue, the current cleanup efforts in Vietnam, the various forms of assistance\u2014including U.S. assistance\u2014provided to people with medical conditions associated with dioxin exposure, and the implications for bilateral relations. It concludes with a brief discussion of possible congressional responses to the issue.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20120829_RL34761_db3823c04a6acb80f03a17b5b5cb85b6caa77248.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20120829_RL34761_db3823c04a6acb80f03a17b5b5cb85b6caa77248.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign policy", "name": "Foreign policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations -- U.S. -- Vietnam", "name": "Foreign relations -- U.S. -- Vietnam" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations -- Vietnam -- U.S.", "name": "Foreign relations -- Vietnam -- U.S." }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Hazardous substances", "name": "Hazardous substances" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Herbicides", "name": "Herbicides" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Agent Orange", "name": "Agent Orange" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "History", "name": "History" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "War", "name": "War" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Vietnamese Conflict", "name": "Vietnamese Conflict" } ] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc26299/", "id": "RL34761_2009May28", "date": "2009-05-28", "retrieved": "2010-07-07T17:39:19", "title": "Vietnamese Victims of Agent Orange and U.S.-Vietnam Relations", "summary": "This report examines various estimates of the effects that the herbicide Agent Orange has had on Vietnam's people and environment, the history of U.S. policy on the issue, the current clean up efforts in Vietnam, the various forms of assistance -- including U.S. assistance -- provided to people with medical conditions associated with dioxin exposure, and the implications for bilateral relations. It concludes with a brief discussion of possible congressional responses to the issue.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20090528_RL34761_6706e30f66b0a5766651e651589c9d4f305388c3.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20090528_RL34761_6706e30f66b0a5766651e651589c9d4f305388c3.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign policy", "name": "Foreign policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations - U.S. - Vietnam", "name": "Foreign relations - U.S. - Vietnam" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations - Vietnam - U.S.", "name": "Foreign relations - Vietnam - U.S." }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Hazardous substances", "name": "Hazardous substances" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Herbicides", "name": "Herbicides" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Agent Orange", "name": "Agent Orange" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "History", "name": "History" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "War", "name": "War" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Vietnamese Conflict", "name": "Vietnamese Conflict" } ] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc26298/", "id": "RL34761_2008Nov21", "date": "2008-11-21", "retrieved": "2010-07-07T17:39:19", "title": "Vietnamese Victims of Agent Orange and U.S.-Vietnam Relations", "summary": "According to various estimates, the U.S. military sprayed approximately 11-12 million gallons of Agent Orange over nearly 10% of Vietnamese territory between 1961 and 1971. This report examines various estimates of the effects of Agent Orange on Vietnam's people and environment, the history of U.S. policy on the issue, the current clean-up efforts in Vietnam, the various forms of assistance -- including U.S. assistance -- provided to people with medical conditions associated with dioxin exposure, and the implications for bilateral relations. It concludes with a brief discussion of possible congressional responses to the issue.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20081121_RL34761_036eb6d0b200bce68ecbbfc191e73f213bb0e211.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20081121_RL34761_036eb6d0b200bce68ecbbfc191e73f213bb0e211.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign policy", "name": "Foreign policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations - U.S. - Vietnam", "name": "Foreign relations - U.S. - Vietnam" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foriegn relations - Vietnam - U.S.", "name": "Foriegn relations - Vietnam - U.S." }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Agent Orange", "name": "Agent Orange" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Hazardous substances", "name": "Hazardous substances" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Chemical warfare", "name": "Chemical warfare" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Defoliant operations", "name": "Defoliant operations" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Defense policy", "name": "Defense policy" } ] } ], "topics": [ "Appropriations", "Foreign Affairs", "Intelligence and National Security", "National Defense" ] }