A Foreign Ministry spokesman said Vietnam was disappointed by a U.S. court’s dismissal of a lawsuit brought against the manufacturers Agent Orange, calling the decision “wrong” and “unjust.”
"The ruling has denied the fact that Agent Orange and [its component] dioxin, which were used by the U.S. forces during the war, inflicted serious damage upon the Vietnamese people and environment," said ministry spokesman Le Dung yesterday.
Friday's ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York concluded that the plaintiffs, who are victims of Agent Orange, could not pursue claims against Dow Chemical Co., Monsanto Co. and nearly 30 other companies.
“Regrettably, such a ruling was made when the U.S. Administration is making efforts to cooperate with Vietnam to clean up toxic substances left behind by the use of Agent Orange,” Dung told the media.
The lawsuit contended that Agent Orange has caused health problems including birth defects and cancer in Vietnamese exposed to the poisonous herbicide.
Studies have shown that dioxin compounds are still present in so-called "hot spots" at levels hundreds of times higher than are acceptable.
“Millions of Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange and dioxin have to suffer both physical and mental problems everyday,” Dung said.
He called on the U.S. chemical companies to “contribute practically” to resolving the toxic impacts and take “legal and moral responsibility” for both American and Vietnamese veterans of the war.
Dung said he believed the international community would continue to join hands with the Vietnamese victims in “this struggle for justice.”
Nguyen Trong Nhan, vice chairman of the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin told the media earlier he had anticipated the ruling because “it is not easy suing big and powerful U.S. companies on U.S. soil and under the U.S. court system."
Another Vietnamese official, scientist and dioxin expert, Le Ke Son, said, "I believe the victims group will take this to the U.S. Supreme Court", which would be the next stage of appeal.
A Monsanto statement on the ruling said that "as we have always maintained, issues related to the military's use of agent orange during the Vietnam War are best left to the appropriate governments to discuss and resolve."
The US and its allies dropped over 11 million gallons of Agent Orange on Vietnam between 1961 and 1971 to deprive their enemies of forest cover and food, according to a BBC report.
Over 10 percent of the country was hit with the herbicide/defoliant.
Fourteen percent of the area targeted was farmland, said the BBC.
In 1984, seven chemical companies, including Dow and Monsanto, agreed to a $180 million settlement with U.S. veterans who claimed that agent orange caused health problems.
Veterans of the war from South Korea, New Zealand and Australia, have all received compensation for damages caused by Agent Orange.
No Vietnamese has ever received compensation
"The ruling has denied the fact that Agent Orange and [its component] dioxin, which were used by the U.S. forces during the war, inflicted serious damage upon the Vietnamese people and environment," said ministry spokesman Le Dung yesterday.
Friday's ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York concluded that the plaintiffs, who are victims of Agent Orange, could not pursue claims against Dow Chemical Co., Monsanto Co. and nearly 30 other companies.
“Regrettably, such a ruling was made when the U.S. Administration is making efforts to cooperate with Vietnam to clean up toxic substances left behind by the use of Agent Orange,” Dung told the media.
The lawsuit contended that Agent Orange has caused health problems including birth defects and cancer in Vietnamese exposed to the poisonous herbicide.
Studies have shown that dioxin compounds are still present in so-called "hot spots" at levels hundreds of times higher than are acceptable.
“Millions of Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange and dioxin have to suffer both physical and mental problems everyday,” Dung said.
He called on the U.S. chemical companies to “contribute practically” to resolving the toxic impacts and take “legal and moral responsibility” for both American and Vietnamese veterans of the war.
Dung said he believed the international community would continue to join hands with the Vietnamese victims in “this struggle for justice.”
Nguyen Trong Nhan, vice chairman of the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin told the media earlier he had anticipated the ruling because “it is not easy suing big and powerful U.S. companies on U.S. soil and under the U.S. court system."
Another Vietnamese official, scientist and dioxin expert, Le Ke Son, said, "I believe the victims group will take this to the U.S. Supreme Court", which would be the next stage of appeal.
A Monsanto statement on the ruling said that "as we have always maintained, issues related to the military's use of agent orange during the Vietnam War are best left to the appropriate governments to discuss and resolve."
The US and its allies dropped over 11 million gallons of Agent Orange on Vietnam between 1961 and 1971 to deprive their enemies of forest cover and food, according to a BBC report.
Over 10 percent of the country was hit with the herbicide/defoliant.
Fourteen percent of the area targeted was farmland, said the BBC.
In 1984, seven chemical companies, including Dow and Monsanto, agreed to a $180 million settlement with U.S. veterans who claimed that agent orange caused health problems.
Veterans of the war from South Korea, New Zealand and Australia, have all received compensation for damages caused by Agent Orange.
No Vietnamese has ever received compensation
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