Trần Tố Nga and the supporters for her case at the French court. — VNA/VNS Photo Hữu Chiến

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam has reiterated its support for victims of Agent Orange/dioxin seeking justice, following a recent hearing at France's highest court in a lawsuit brought by Vietnamese-French activist Trần Tố Nga against US chemical companies.

Responding to a question at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' regular press briefing on Thursday regarding the case, spokeswoman Phạm Thu Hằng said the devastating consequences of the war continue to profoundly affect Việt Nam and its people.

"Though the war is over, its devastating consequences still profoundly affect the country and people of Việt Nam, including the longstanding and serious impacts on Agent Orange/dioxin victims," Hằng said.

"We strongly support the victims of Agent Orange/dioxin in demanding that the chemical companies that manufactured and supplied Agent Orange to the US military during the war in Việt Nam be held accountable for the damage they have caused."

The remarks came after France's Court of Cassation, the country's highest court for civil and criminal matters, opened a hearing on June 16 in the case brought by Nga against 14 US chemical companies.

Nga – a former Vietnam News Agency correspondent who has become a French citizen – filed the lawsuit in France in 2014, accusing the companies of producing and supplying Agent Orange, the toxic herbicide sprayed by the US military during the war in Việt Nam.

The case has so far centred on whether the companies can claim jurisdictional immunity because they acted under contracts with the US Government, rather than on the merits of the case itself.

Lawyers representing Nga have argued that the defendants are private commercial entities and therefore cannot be shielded by immunity normally reserved for states or bodies exercising sovereign authority.

If the Court of Cassation overturns an August 2024 ruling by the Paris Court of Appeal, which upheld the companies' immunity claims, the case could be sent back to a lower court for reconsideration and, for the first time, open the way for judicial examination of the companies' alleged responsibility for the consequences of Agent Orange.

Speaking after the hearing in Paris, Nga said her legal battle was not a personal one, but a quest for justice on behalf of millions of Vietnamese victims still suffering from the long-term effects of Agent Orange exposure.

A ruling by the Court of Cassation is expected on September 16.

According to the Vietnamese Government, around 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to Agent Orange/dioxin during and after the war. Of those, about three million are considered victims, suffering from illnesses, disabilities or birth defects linked to the toxic chemical that was used widely by the US military as defoliant during the war. — VNS