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PR NO. 196
dangerous and clandestine departures. Before this Committee in 1984, I had the honor to announce President Reagan's humanitarian
itiative for the resettlement in the United States of Amerasians and the reeducation center prisoners. In 1986 we reached a bilateral agreement with Vietnam to expedite resettlement of Amerasian children.
Since 1984 progress on the resettlement of reeducation center detainees has been disappointingly' slow. In July 1988 we had very encouraging bilateral talks in Hanoi. At that time, both sides committed themselves to an early second meeting in Hanoi in order to begin processing within several months. It appeared that the U.S. and Vietnam had successfully separated their political differences on Cambodia from what has become our shared interest in expanding humanitarian cooperation between our countries.
For reasons not satisfactorily explained, the Vietnamese decided to take exception to recent Administration testimony which reaffirmed longstanding U.S. policy on the conditions for the normalization of diplomatic relations with Vietnam. That is, Vietnam's departure from Cambodia. They announced a "temporary suspension" of cooperation with us on the POW/MIA issue and on the resettlement of reeducation center detainees. We were pleased that on August 30 they lifted the suspension on POW/MIA cooperation. But we remain deeply disappointed on the continued suspension of progress on the resettlement of the detainees.
In my address at the ASEAN post-ministerial meeting in July, I stated that the United States holds no hostile feelings toward Vietnam as a result of the war in Indochina. In fact, we look forward to the time when we will be able to enter into normal diplomatic and commercial relations with Vietnam. Today, we call upon Vietnam to help heal one of the most painful wounds remaining from the war -- by responding favorably to the wish of thousands of reeducation center detainees to be allowed to be reunited with their families in the United States or to come with their families to our country.
We recently reaffirmed our readiness to have our delegation return to Hanoi for the planned second meeting and, we hope, complete an agreement. We hope Vietnam will lift its "temporary" suspension of cooperation with us on this compelling humanitarian issue.
Thai-Cambodian Border. In the wake of the fall of the Pol Pot regime, hundreds of thousands of fearful Cambodians fled toward Thailand for food and medical care. Once there, hundreds died from exhaustion due to severe malnutrition or disease. American officials and private citizens provided emergency care to help