Press Center

Media Alert: The US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange-Dioxin

Contact:
Jeffrey Harris
Phone: (202) 736-3848
jeffrey.harris@aspeninstitute.org

**MEDIA ALERT**

The US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange-Dioxin will hold a press briefing to discuss the seminar hosted by the Dialogue Group entitled, “The United States and Vietnam: Addressing War Legacy Issues Together.” The Dialogue Group will also discuss their upcoming testimony at a hearing held by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs’ Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and the Global Environment. The hearing on June 4th will focus on Agent Orange-Dioxin related issues in Vietnam and is only the second such hearing to directly address these issues.

WHO: US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange-Dioxin

  • Susan Berresford - Convener, US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange-Dioxin
  • Ambassador Ngo Quang Xuan - Co-chair of the Dialogue Group; Vice Chair, Foreign Affairs Committee, Vietnam National Assembly
  • Walter Isaacson - Co-chair of the Dialogue Group; President & CEO, The Aspen Institute
  • Lt. General Phung Khac Dang - Vice President, Vietnam Veterans Association
  • Mary Dolan-Hogrefe - Vice President and Senior Advisor, National Organization on Disability; Director, World Committee on Disability
  • Do Hoang Long - Deputy Director, People to People Relations Department, Party External Relations Commission
  • William Mayer - President and CEO, Park Avenue Equity Partners; Chairman Emeritus, The Aspen Institute
  • Dr. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong - Chief of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Medical University of Ho Chi Minh City; Director-General, Ngoc Tam Hospital Corporation
  • Prof. Vo Quy - Center for Natural Resources & Environmental Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi
  • Vaughan C. Turekian - Chief International Officer, The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • Christine Todd Whitman – President, Whitman Strategy Group

WHAT: Press Availability, Q&A

WHERE: The Aspen Institute, One Dupont Circle, NW • Suite 700 • Washington, DC• 20036

WHEN: June 02nd, 2009, 5:00 PM

**Please make arrangements to attend by contacting Jeffrey Harris (see above) **

US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange-Dioxin
Background Information

The US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange/Dioxin was established in February 2007 with support from the Ford Foundation. The group has identified ways to deal with the most pressing of the human and environmental consequences of the U.S. military's defoliation campaign. This bipartisan, non-governmental initiative is comprised of distinguished policy makers, scientists, and nonprofit and business leaders. Leading the Vietnamese side is Ambassador Ngo Quang Xuan, vice chair of the Vietnamese National Assembly's Foreign Affairs Committee, and leading the U.S. side is Walter Isaacson, president and CEO of the Aspen Institute.

The Aspen Institute Advocacy and Exchange Program on Agent Orange/Dioxin promotes dialogue within the US policy community, and between the United States and Vietnam, on solutions to the continuing impact of the wartime use of herbicides in Vietnam. The impact of war can last decades beyond the ceasefire. With support from the Ford Foundation, the Aspen Institute Advocacy and Exchange Program on Agent Orange/Dioxin is a multi-year project to help Americans and Vietnamese address the continuing health and environmental impact of herbicides sprayed in Vietnam during the war.

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