Chronology

1010:   The Ly dynasty founds the city of Hanoi as its capital

1858:   The French navy attacks Da Nang, starting 25 years of struggle between France and Vietnam

1867:   Cochinchina (South Vietnam) becomes a French colony

1883:   Tonkin (North Vietnam) and Annam (central Vietnam) become part of French Indochina

1940:   Japan invades Indochina

1941:   Ho Chi Minh starts the Viet Minh, declaring Leninism an ideological weapon against colonialism

1945:   The Viet Minh ousts Emperor Bao Dai; Ho Chi Minh declares the country’s independence

1954:   Vietnam defeats the French at the battle of Dien Bien Phu. At the Geneva peace conference, Vietnam is partitioned at the 17th parallel into North and South Vietnam.

1961:   U.S. President John F. Kennedy sends the first military advisers to South Vietnam. Testing of Agent Orange and other herbicides begins in August

1962:   Operation Hades, later renamed Operation Ranch Hand, begins aerial spraying of herbicides

1965:   U.S. troops arrive in Da Nang; aerial raids begin. Agent Orange spraying continues nationwide

1968:   The Viet Cong’s Tet offensive is a military failure but stuns the West and sparks U.S. anti-war feeling, including protests against the use of Agent Orange

1971:   U.S. ends use of Agent Orange after spraying 11.4 million gallons. Remaining stocks are collected at Da Nang, Bien Hoa and Tuy Hoa airbases, re-barreled and shipped to the South Pacific for incineration

1973:   After the Paris Accords are ratified, the U.S. military withdraws from Vietnam

1975:   North Vietnamese forces enter Saigon; the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is proclaimed in 1976

1979:   U.S. veterans file class action lawsuit against chemical companies that produced Agent Orange

1984:   Veterans’ lawsuit is settled out of court for $180 million

1987:   Vietnam begins liberalizing economy with new foreign investment law. First U.S. tourists arrive

1991:   U.S. Congress approves Agent Orange Act, creating a list of “presumptive illnesses” for which government compensation and medical care will be provided to US Vietnam veterans

1994:   U.S. ends trade embargo against Vietnam

1995:   U.S. and Vietnam establish diplomatic relations

2002:   U.S. and Vietnam hold joint scientific conference, sign a research memorandum of understanding

2004:   Vietnamese citizens file suit in U.S. courts against Agent Orange-producing chemical companies

2005:   U.S. District and Appeals courts dismiss Vietnamese case. U.S. Supreme Court later refuses a review

2006:   U.S. and Vietnamese presidents meet and agree that cooperation in addressing Agent Orange residues in Vietnam would strengthen the bilateral relationship

2007:   The U.S. Congress appropriates $3 million to address remediation of dioxin hotspots in Vietnam and to support public health programs in the surrounding communities

2009:   Congress appropriates an additional $3 million for the same purposes.

2010:   Congress appropriates an additional $3 million for the same purposes. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announces $34 million soil remediation program at Da Nang airport.

2011:   Congress appropriates an additional $18.6 million to address remediation of dioxin hotspots in Vietnam and to support public health programs in the surrounding communities.

August 2011