Vietnam receives mine-clearing gear from United States
Posted by: James Hathaway
Source: Viet Nam News
HA NOI — The United States yesterday donated nearly US$1 million worth of equipment to locate and clear landmines and unexploded ordnance to the Centre for Bomb and Mine Disposal Technology (BOMICEN).
The equipment will reinforce the centre’s capacity to deal with explosive hazards that have remained after thirty years of conflict.
Since joining the US Government’s Humanitarian Mine Action Programme in 2000, Viet Nam has received over $37 million as mine action aid, with most of the funds supporting the work of various non-governmental organisations for mine and UXO surveys and clearance, mine risk education and assisting mine survivors.
Read the rest of this article here: http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/showarticle.php?num=02SOC281206
Posted by James Hathaway at December 28, 2006 02:26 PM
Comments (2)
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The U.S. Government's donation of mine clearing equipment is commendable, and will help in the ongoing demining efforts in Viet Nam. In my view, the U.S. should go one step further, and sign the Mine Ban Treaty which has been ratified by 150 other nations. Banning the use and stockpiling of land mines is becoming the new international "norm"; unfortunately, the U.S. Government still stubbornly refuses to acknowledge this fact, much to the detriment of our nation's reputation within the international community. Hopefully, a new U.S. administration in 2009 will reverse this unwise policy and sign the Mine Ban Treaty.
They should also sign the cluster bomb ban
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