Southeast Asia Information Port News (www.dnyxxg.com) – The Lao government held a ceremony at Pakse International Airport in Champasak Province on Monday to formally hand over the remains of a U.S. soldier killed in the Vietnam War to the U.S. government. This handover is a significant achievement of the joint Lao-U.S. search and rescue operation for the remains of missing U.S. personnel in fiscal year 2025-2026.
It is understood that the Lao-U.S. joint search team had previously completed its second joint field search operation of the fiscal year in Laos, focusing on three missing persons cases: Case 2052 in Phuoc Village, Sangnoy District, Houaphan Province; Case 1743 in Vathei Village; and Case 1384 in Dalangmai Village, Kalen District, Saikong Province. The remains of a U.S. soldier have been successfully recovered in Case 2052.
His Excellency Maithhong Thammavongsak, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Laos, presided over the handover ceremony on behalf of the Lao government and reiterated Laos' consistent humanitarian policy – continuing to cooperate with the United States in the search for U.S. personnel missing during the Lao War. Ms. Michelle Outlaw, the U.S. Chargé d'Affaires ad interim in Laos, received the remains on behalf of the U.S. side. She expressed her sincere gratitude to the Lao government, local authorities, and communities for their continued cooperation and support during the survey and excavation process.
Since the commencement of the joint search for remains, the Lao-U.S. joint team has traversed Laos from north to south over the past 41 years. With the active assistance of local officials and the public, the survey and excavation work has been carried out systematically, taking into account the specific circumstances of each region. To date, of the 576 reported cases of missing U.S. military personnel, the remains of 295 have been successfully identified and repatriated, accounting for over 50%; the search for the remaining 281 missing personnel continues.
Both the Lao and U.S. governments reiterated their commitment to humanitarian cooperation and their steady progress in this significant transnational cooperative project.
