Washington and Hanoi will discuss details of the issues relating to AO/dioxin and war landmine clearance at a political meeting in Hanoi June 8, the Lao Dong newspaper reported June 8, citing Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Andrew J. Shapiro. Shapiro, who attended the 2010 Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore between June 3-6, arrived in Vietnam June 6 for the third meeting of U.S.-Vietnam Political, Security and Defense Dialogue to take place June 8. The meeting will be a chance for both sides to seek the best measures for the two issues and enhance bilateral cooperation in the areas of peacekeeping operations and training, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, maritime search and rescue, regional security, and nonproliferation, said Shapiro. Washington expects to hear the assessment on the East Sea issue by Vietnam as a relevant side and as the current chair of ASEAN on the occasion, Shapiro added. State Secretary Hillary Clinton will attend an upcoming conference on security policy of the ASEAN Regional Forum and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates will be present at the ASEAN+3 Defense Ministers’ Meeting this autumn, he noted. These are part of Obama Administration’s policy to beef up the relations with countries in the Asia-Pacific region, the American Assistant emphasized. The U.S. Congress approved $6 million in total for programs to assist AO/dioxin victims and mitigate impacts of the toxic chemicals in Vietnam between 2007 and 2009.
