U.S wants joint meeting with Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos on search for U.S remains

March 23, 2011
Xinhua

The United States wants a meeting together with Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos to speed up searching for the remains of American soldiers missing in the Vietnam War, said Ann Mills Griffiths, head of the National League of POW-MIA Families, on Wednesday.

She made the suggestion during a meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, and she also thanked Cambodia for helping the U. S search for American soldiers' remains in Cambodia, the spokesman for the Prime Minister, Eang Sophalleth, told reporters after the meeting.

Meanwhile, the premier reiterated that Cambodia will cooperate actively on this issue.

Isle lab gets remains found in Cambodia

Sunday, March 2, 2008
Associated Press

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - The remains of a U.S. serviceman who died in Cambodia more than three decades ago arrived in Hawaii for forensic analysis.

The repatriation is the latest effort by the U.S. military to account for personnel who went missing in the Southeast Asian nation during the Vietnam War.

After a brief ceremony at Phnom Penh International Airport yesterday, a U.S. military transport plane carrying the remains flew to Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, where the forensic identification process will begin, a U.S. Embassy statement said.

Ambassador Joseph Mussomeli said the remains are believed to be those of a U.S. serviceman who died on Koh Tang, an island several miles off the coast of Cambodia's main port city of Sihanoukville. The embassy did not give further details about when the remains were found.

Eighteen U.S. Marines were killed fighting Khmer Rouge forces on Koh Tang in May 1975. Invading Marines fought for three hours trying to rescue the captured crew of the U.S. Merchant Marine vessel Mayaguez without knowing they had already been released by the Cambodian communists.

Mussomeli said cooperation with the Cambodian government has allowed the United States to send home and identify the remains of 29 missing American servicemen. Another 55 are still unaccounted for.

Repatriation of remains of missing American military service member

U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia Joseph A. Mussomeli, right, gives a speech as a U.S. military major Craig Tippins, left, stands at attention during a repatriation ceremony to honor remains believed to be associated with a missing American military service member at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Saturday, March. 1, 2008. Remains of an American military service man who died in Cambodia more than decades ago were flown Saturday to the United States for identification analysis. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
U.S. military personnel place U.S. flag over a coffin during a repatriation ceremony to honor remains believed to be associated with a missing American military service member at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Saturday, March. 1, 2008. Remains of an American military service man who died in Cambodia more than decades ago were flown Saturday to the United States for identification analysis. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
U.S. military personnel place U.S. flag over a coffin during a repatriation ceremony to honor remains believed to be associated with a missing American military service member at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Saturday, March. 1, 2008. Remains of an American military service man who died in Cambodia more than decades ago were flown Saturday to the United States for identification analysis. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
U.S. military personnel stand at attention by a flag-draped coffin containing what is believed to be the remains of a member of the U.S. military service, who went missing in Cambodia decades ago, during a repatriation ceremony at Phnom Penh International Airport March 1, 2008. The remains will be flown to the U.S. for identification analysis. REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea
U.S. military personnel carry a coffin during a repatriation ceremony to honor remains believed to be associated with a missing American military service member at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Saturday, March. 1, 2008. Remains of an American military service man who died in Cambodia more than decades ago were flown Saturday to the United States for identification analysis. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
U.S. military personnel carry a coffin during a repatriation ceremony to honor remains believed to be associated with a missing American military service member at Phnom Penh International Airport, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Saturday, March. 1, 2008. Remains of an American military service man who died in Cambodia more than decades ago were flown Saturday to the United States for identification analysis. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Cambodia: Remains Of US Serviceman Flown From Cambodia For Identification

2008-03-01
AP

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA: The remains of a U.S. serviceman who died in Cambodia more than three decades ago were flown Saturday (1 March) to the United States for forensic analysis.

The repatriation is the latest effort by the U.S. military to account for personnel who went missing in the Southeast Asian nation during the Vietnam War.

After a brief ceremony at Phnom Penh International Airport, a U.S. military transport plane carrying the remains left for Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, where the forensic identification process will begin, a U.S. Embassy statement said.

Ambassador Joseph Mussomeli said the remains are believed to be those of a U.S. serviceman who died on Koh Tang, an island several kilometers (miles) off the coast of Cambodia's main port city of Sihanoukville. The embassy did give further details about when the remains were found.

Eighteen U.S. Marines were killed fighting Khmer Rouge forces on Koh Tang in May 1975. Invading Marines fought for three hours trying to rescue the captured crew of the U.S. merchant marine vessel Mayaguez without knowing they had already been released by the Cambodian communists.

Mussomeli said cooperation with the Cambodian government has allowed the U.S. to send home and identify the remains of 29 missing American servicemen. Another 55 are still unaccounted for.

US to Send Off Remains of Missing Serviceman

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
28 February 2008

The US will hold a ceremony Saturday to fly out the remains of an American serviceman missing in action since the Vietnam War and recently recovered, an embassy official said Thursday.

A US team found the remains during searches in Ratanakkiri province and Koh Tang, a US embassy statement said.

They will be flown to Hawaii and analyzed, the statement said.

"At this point, the search teams believe the remains are associated with one US serviceman," US Embassy spokesman Jeff Daigle said.

About 55 Americans remain unrecovered, he said, but Cambodian cooperation had allowed for the repatriation of the remains of 29 Americans.