Deputy President and General Secretary of the VAVA Tran Xuan Thu reported at a meeting in Hanoi on January 9 that the association has made tireless efforts to win support from the international community. He cited the success of an international conference on A/O victims with the participation of over 40 representatives from countries which had sent troops to Vietnam during the American war as well as countries which had shared the plight of toxic chemical impact during production or tests.

The conference reaffirmed the harmful consequence of Agent Orange on human beings and formed a united front behind Vietnamese victims, said the VAVA chief. He added that impressive pledges for support were made by a number of delegations, including Australia, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Great Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland, Canada and Italy.

Mr Thu also said regarding the US appeal court's final decision on the date of a hearing on a trial against US chemical companies filed by Vietnamese A/O victims, VAVA has worked with Thai Binh province, Hanoi and hospitals to collect another hundreds of dossiers of victims to strengthen its scientific evidence. Thai Binh and Hanoi have sent delegates to represent thousands of Vietnamese A/O victims at the on-going court while Military Hospital 108 and the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre have provided medical evidence for the plaintiffs.

He unveiled the VAVA's 2007 plan to focus on campaigning for international support for the trial, in addition to material assistance for alleviating the plight of victims.

The association is awaiting the Government's approval for its proposal to hold an international conference in Moscow, Russia, on consequences of the US chemical warfare in Vietnam to win world support, especially in East Europe, for the trial, concluded the VAVA leader.

VNA/VOVNews