Socialist Republic of Vietnam

A ceremony to repatriate five sets of remains of US servicemen who died during the war in Vietnam was held at Noi Bai International Airport in Ha Noi on Monday, October 18.

The ceremony was attended by representatives from the Vietnam Office for Seeking Missing Persons (VNOSMP), the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), and the US Embassy in Ha Noi.

At the ceremony, the Vietnamese Government representative handed over five cases of remains and personal effects to US Government officials. The remains and effects will be sent to Hawaii, in the US, for further examination.

This was the 94th handover of American missing servicemen's remains since 1973, bringing the total of repatriated remains to 827.

The remains and personal effects repatriated this time were the results of the 78th Joint Field Activities (JFA) in central provinces of Vietnam in June and July of this year and thanks to local people's efforts. Three sets of remains were found during the 78th JFA and the remaining two by people while working in the fields in Nha Be district of Ho Chi Minh City.

Addressing the ceremony, the US Government representative expressed gratitude and high appreciation to the Vietnamese Government and people for their humanitarian policy, good-will and increasingly efficient cooperation.

Vietnam News Agency