Việt Nam Office for Seeking Missing Persons (VNOSMP) held a ceremony in Hà Nội to hand over the remains of a US serviceman who died during the war in Việt Nam. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The Việt Nam Office for Seeking Missing Persons (VNOSMP) on Friday handed over to the US the remains of a US serviceman who died during the war in Việt Nam.

The handover ceremony was held at Hà Nội’s Gia Lâm Airport with US Chargé d'Affaires of the US Embassy in Hà Nội Christopher Klein, and representatives from the Defence POW/MIA Accounting Agency and the US MIA Office in Hà Nội.

The set of remains was found by joint search teams during the 143th Joint Field Activities from April to July 2021.

The remains had been jointly examined by Vietnamese and US forensic specialists in Hà Nội. The specialists concluded that they might be associated with US servicemen missing during the war in Việt Nam and recommended sending them to Hawaii, the US, for further verification.

Speaking at the ceremony, Director of VNOSMP Lê Chí Dũng spoke highly of assistance from the US in overcoming war consequences, along with the provision of medical supplies and vaccine for the fight against COVID-19 in Việt Nam.

He also reaffirmed the commitment of the Vietnamese Government to work with the US in this humanitarian cooperation.

Klein highly valued the long-term commitment of the Vietnamese Government and people to the search for missing US servicemen, as well as cooperation to ensure that MIA activities in Việt Nam are not disrupted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The MIA search has laid a foundation for further cooperation in addressing humanitarian issues between the two countries, including the US’s support in searching for Vietnamese soldiers who laid down their lives during wartime, he said.

The search for remains of US servicemen missing during the war in Việt Nam is a humanitarian activity between the Vietnamese and US Governments. This is the 155th hand-over of remains of US missing servicemen since 1973. — VNS