soldier remains

For nearly a decade, Richard Magner and Bob Connor have been examining archival wartime footage, battlefield records, and the memories of US veterans to identify locations believed to contain mass graves of fallen Vietnamese soldiers. The information they have provided has contributed to the recovery of 80 sets of remains at Bien Hoa Airport and more than 200 sets of remains at Loc Ninh Airport, while also helping compile 250 case files to support search and recovery efforts.

As part of the “500-day-and-night campaign to accelerate the search, recovery, and identification of fallen soldiers’ remains,” Dong Thap Province is implementing the collection and transfer of samples from fallen soldiers’ remains for DNA analysis. According to the plan, samples will be collected from more than 21,000 martyrs’ graves that remain unidentified or lack sufficient information across the province, with the aim of gradually determining their identities and fulfilling the wishes of their relatives and families.

Vietnam's efforts to support their former enemy has helped dozens of American family find closure.

Through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the two sides have cooperated effectively in such projects as dioxin cleanup at Bien Hoa airport, and support for people with disabilities in provinces severely affected by Agent Orange/Dioxin.

Authorities of the northern province of Dien Bien on January 3 held a memorial service and re-buried 15 sets of remains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers who laid down their lives in Laos during wartime.