US soldierÕs remains repatriated in Da Nang
DA NANG Ñ The remains of the 106th US soldiers to be repatriated since the end of the war were returned to US custody on Monday at Da Nang International Airport.
The remains were unearthed from excavation sites scattered in the countryÕs central region and then handed to the Viet Nam Office for Seeking Missing Persons.
The US Ambassador to Viet Nam Michael W. Michalak and US Army Lieutenant Colonel James Saenz and commander of Detachment Two represented the US Government in receiving the remains from the representatives of the Viet Nam office.
To date, there are 627 missing American soldiers who have been identified since the war ended in 1975. Another 1,353 American soldiers are still unaccounted from the war, according to the US Embassy.
The US places finding missing-in-action soldiers as a top national priority, and Viet NamÕs Government has been assisting in these activities for years, it said.
Representatives of the US Government also took the opportunity to express appreciation of Vietnamese help and said they expected the co-operation between the two countries would be further strengthened.
After the ceremony, the soldiersÕ remains were transferred to one aircraft of the US Air Force for repatriation to their home country by the US Joint POW/MIA Accounting CommandÕs military honour guard. Ñ VNS
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US MIA soldiers return home
The remains of US missing-in-action servicemen have been handed over to the US at Da Nang International Airport.
The remains were uncovered at an excavation site in central Vietnam and transferred to the US by the Vietnam Office for Seeking Missing Persons (VNOSMP).
A repatriation ceremony was held on April 14 in the presence of US Ambassador Michael W. Michalak, US Army Lieutenant and Commander of Detachment Two Colonel James Saenz and representatives from the VNOSMP and the US Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC).
The ceremony marked the 106th post-war handover of remains from Vietnam.
Since 1975, remains of 883 US soldiers have been identified with 627 from Vietnam. The US says it appreciates VietnamÕs co-operation and assistance in field operations. (VNA)