Almost 40 years after the end of the Vietnam War, the United States has established a cleanup program to address the effects of toxic chemicals used during the conflict that continue to afflict the Vietnamese people with cancers, birth defects and other diseases.

The defoliant Agent Orange fell on American soldiers in addition to Vietnamese military and civilians. Many of those who sprayed and came into contact with the chemical suffered illnesses later on. The U.S. government has spent billions of dollars on disability and health care for those soldiers.

The U.S. sprayed about 20 million gallons of Agent Orange and other herbicides in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, destroying millions of acres of forest and farmland.

— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.