National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien announced this week that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has contributed an additional $20 million toward the remediation of dioxin at the Biên Hòa Airbase Area, the primary site for the storage and handling of Agent Orange during the U.S.-Vietnam War and the largest remaining dioxin hotspot in Vietnam.

This announcement increases USAID’s funding to date for the clean-up of Biên Hòa to over $110 million. This joint effort between USAID and the Government of Vietnam's Air Force-Air Defence Command (ADAFC) is expected to take a total of 10 years to complete. Trigon Associates, LLC, a woman-owned small business based in New Orleans, Louisiana, is providing the master plan for the multi-year clean-up project.

USAID’s work to improve the lives of those in and around Biên Hòa follows the successful conclusion in 2018 of a similar project between USAID and the Government of Vietnam to remediate contamination caused by dioxin at Đà Nẵng Airport.

The United States is committed to working with the Government of Vietnam to resolve war legacies while continuing to strengthen the economic, cultural, and security ties between the two countries. USAID’s efforts to clean up dioxin at both Biên Hòa and Đà Nẵng have been critical to building mutual trust and cooperation while deepening the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership.