Are Napalm and Agent Orange chemical weapons?

[Cattledog]

Just wondering since the US used them in WW II and Vietnam.

The U.S. Military Dumped 20 Million Gallons of Chemicals on Vietnam from 1962 - 1971

During the Vietnam War, the U.S. military sprayed 20 million gallons of chemicals, including the very toxic Agent Orange, on the forests and farmlands of Vietnam and neighboring countries, deliberately destroying food supplies, shattering the jungle ecology, and ravaging the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Vietnam estimates that as a result of the decade-long chemical attack, 400,000 people were killed or maimed, 500,000 babies have been born with birth defects, and 2 million have suffered from cancer or other illnesses. In 2012, the Red Cross estimated that one million people in Vietnam have disabilities or health problems related to Agent Orange.

The U.S. Military Killed Hundreds of Thousands of Japanese Civilians with Napalm from 1944 - 1945

Napalm is a sticky and highly flammable gel which has been used as a weapon of terror by the U.S. military. In 1980, the UN declared the use of napalm on swaths of civilian population a war crime. That's exactly what the U.S. military did in World War II, dropping enough napalm in one bombing raid on Tokyo to burn 100,000 people to death, injure a million more, and leave a million without homes in the single deadliest air raid of World War II.

Source:

https://mic.com/articles/62023/10-chemical-weapons-attacks-washington-doesn-t-want-you-to-talk-about#.e9F2YraLh

[brewens]

1. I would say no. It at least wasn't intended that spreading agent orange over large areas would be

the same as a nerve gas attack. I mean having NVA troops dying from cancer or whatever decades later wouldn't have been a good tactic to win an ongoing battle.

It's horrific that we eventually poisoned a lot of people, including our own with that crap, but it wasn't the same as using chemical weapons intentionally.

[Heartstrings]

2. In my opinion yes....

Absolutely to the napalm....

[herding cats]

3. Agent Orange is a herbicide, which had horrific side effects to those exposed.

It wasn't intended as a "chemical" weapon when troops and the Vietnamese citizens were exposed to it. It was classic, 'let's look for a short term solution without worrying about the long term consequences. We can cover those up later and pretend it isn't a thing down the road.'

Napalm is a vile, sticky flammable liquid which I believe was used in WWII - Vietnam. I'd class it as a type of chemical weapon, personally.

[Drahthaardogs]

10. Not quite

Agent Orange was a mixture of 2,4,5-C which is no longer produced and 2,4-D. Some batches were contaminated with 2,3,7,-8 TCDD, the most toxic of the dioxins. It is the dioxins that caused the problems, not really the pesticide.

[herding cats]

19. I remember reading something about this when Viktor Yushchenko was poisoned.

It was a high concentration of TCDD which was used, and they mentioned how it was present in Agent Orange in much lower concentrations during the Vietnam war. Does that sound correct, or am I remembering incorrectly?

[Drahthaardogs]

61. Yes, the dioxins are very toxic.

They were produced through a poor manufacturing process. Not all batches contained it.

I have actually cleaned up a site with hurried drums of the stuff years ago

[womanofthehills]

51. Agent Orange was often not mixed according to directions - sometimes 6 to 25 times stronger

Some lawsuits online refer to Agent Orange as a CW.

[anarch]

21. a "defoliant"

it's a horrible poison, but not directly intended for use against humans.

Napalm is an incendiary weapon, not directly intended to kill people through a chemical reaction; I don't know why that's "better".

The morality of mass killing is a tricky subject.

[herding cats]

24. Ah, defoliant, not herbicide. I had that wrong.

Still it was and is toxic, but wasn't used as a toxin, which is an important distinction in context, I agree.

Napalm... it was intended more to cause mass suffering and casualties. Perhaps that's the distinction? Both still wrecked massive damage and in many cases subsequent deaths, but as you say, "the morality of mass killing is a tricky subject." Sad, and true words.

[sarah FAILIN]

40. They dropped the defoliant on our own people

I understand they thought they were helping to keep them safe by getting rid of the places the other side could hide. I knew a vet crippled by it, and it was terrible. I think they didn't know what it would do long term when they were dropping it.

[Foamfollower]

4. No, they are not.

Napalm is a cruel incendiary that was banned after the Vietnam war.

Agent Orange is an herbicide that was used as a defoliant.

Neither have ever been considered chemical weapons under international law.

[brush]

9. Are you purposely ignoring the obvious? They are chemicals and were used as weapons.

Some may not like to recognize it and refuse to call it what it is, but we, the United States, used chemical weapons when we deployed napalm and agent orange.

[Drahthaardogs]

11. False.

Simply wrong

[brush]

14. I think you are simply wrong. There are still areas in Vietnam affected by the chemical...

agent orange. And many Vietnam veterans suffered from being exposed to it.

[Drahthaardogs]

17. Doesn't make it a weapon

and it wasn't. Asbestos killed a lot of people too. Still was not a weapon

[brush]

22. Such silliness. Of course it was a weapon, which is why the army used it to cause harm.

[Spider Jerusalem]

45. ...to trees. It was used because it's a defoliant. So helicopter patrols could see the ground.

Without the jungle being in the way. It's not a weapon if it's not deliberately used on humans (which it wasn't; there was no clear military objective served by using a defoliant on people, who are not plants, and importantly, don't have leaves).

[LeftInTX]

46. It was a herbicide/defoliant that was contaminated with dioxin

One of the herbicides is currently used in Weed B Gon. The other herbicide is no longer in use, but it did not contain dioxin. I'm not sure how the dioxin got into the Agent Orange. But we did not intentionally spray dioxin on jungles, we sprayed defoliant/herbicide.

[Drahthaardogs]

60. It was an herbicide

And i am a toxicologist and I am well versed and experienced in chemical warfare agents. You are wrong for fucks sake. Stop it.

[womanofthehills]

52. The US used a very dirty form of contaminated Agent Orange

[randr]

81. Napalm and agent orange were weapon support systems

Implemented to remove forestation in order to expose targets to bombing. Makes it part of the arsenal of weaponry.
That napalm also burned hidden enemy encampments makes it a weapon.

[Drahthaardogs]

85. Go get a military manual on chem warfare agents

Tell me what page you find agent Orange on

[Foamfollower]

18. NO, YOU ARE WRONG!

Agent orange is not now nor has it ever even been a WEAPON. It is a DEFOLIANT!

Napalm is an incendiary, NOT A CHEMICAL WEAPON.

Words mean things and you are ignoring the definition of "chemical weapon" as set forth under international law.

[brush]

23. More silliness. Of course it was a weapon, which is why the army used it to cause harm.

[Foamfollower]

31. BULLSHIT!!!!

It was used to defoliate the jungle. It was NEVER a weapon. You need to educate yourself because what you just said is untrue.

[SharonClark]

36. So, a chemical strong enough to defoliate a jungle would, of course, have no affect

upon the humans and animals that live in the jungle? The military and corporations that ignore the impact of chemicals on our environment are purposefully ignorant. Just ask Monsanto.

[Foamfollower]

68. Herbicide.

Jesus Christ on a fucking pogo stick

[brush]

37. Every one has an opinion, among other things.

[Foamfollower]

69. You are entitled to your own opinons, but not your own facts.

It is a FACT, Agent Orange is not now, never has been and never will be considered a weapon under any definition of the term.

That you choose to ignore the fact says much about you.

[womanofthehills]

53. Agent Orange lawsuits refer to it as a CW.

[Foamfollower]

70. ERRONEOUSLY

It is not a weapon.

[sarah FAILIN]

42. They dropped it on our own people not knowing what they were doing

They thought it was strictly to make our troops safer by getting rid of the hiding spots the other guys could snipe on them from. Had it been intended to be used to cause harm in itself, they wouldn't have dropped it on our own people.

The long term effects were not known till later.

[brush]

43. They dropped it to get rid of brush so enemy soldiers could not use it for cover...

and thus be more easily killed.

[sarah FAILIN]

47. Correct, but it was not a "chemical weopon"

"A chemical weapon (CW) is a munition that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on human beings. They are classified as weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), though they are distinct from nuclear weapons, biological weapons (diseases), and radiological weapons (which use radioactive decay of elements)."

It didn't cause the death, but made it easier to shoot the enemy because there was no foliage. Saran actually causes the death. You don't need a guy with a gun to come along later to shoot the victim.

[whopis01]

86. How about Tritonal?

It is a chemical and it is used in weapons. Does that make it a chemical weapon?

[OilemFirchen]

12. Like water cannons?

[Foamfollower]

15. Are you purposely ignoring the obvious? Neither have EVER been considered chemical weapons under

international law.

Not once.

Stop trying to define something to fit an agenda when it has absolutely nothing to do with the facts and the facts are neither Napalm nor Agent Orange have EVER been chemical weapons.

In fact, Agent Orange has NEVER been considered a weapon of any type!

[MattBaggins]

27. Zyklon B was a pesticide so therefor can not be a chemical weapon by your legalese

[Foamfollower]

32. You need to educate yourself on the Geneva Accords

Because you have absolutely no clue what you are talking about.

[SharonClark]

39. Geez Louise, now the "Geneva Accords"?

Can you possibly imagine that discussions are not bound by "International Law" and "Geneva Accords"? Try using the dictionary and common sense.

[Foamfollower]

71. International law and the Geneva Acoords DEFINES WHAT A CHEMICAL WEAPON IS!!!!

And you had the nerve to tell me to use some common sense.

[SharonClark]

38. This discussion has little or nothing to do with 'international law'

The DU posters may be more concerned about the reality of how governments and corporations use chemicals to do harm during military operations.

[Achilleaze]

58. Tell that to the people whose lives and land were bombarded with the shit

[PeacefulPeavey]

73. Fire retardant?

Isn't that a picture of a fire fighting tanker droppping fire retardant? Are you trying to say that fire retardants are chemical weapons?!?

[jberryhill]

80. Yes, that is the 2013 wildfires in California

Apparently, the Obama administration was using chemical weapons on Californians. Who knew?

[Achilleaze]

83. OK, blame google. That's the image that turned up. But

you are welcome to view this, which once again google assures me is Agent Orange. Whatever. Whether it's fire retardant or agent orange, and whether you call it Ambrosia Elixer or chemical poison, I don't want that shit dumped on me, or my family.

[jberryhill]

79. The next time I am in Lancaster, California, I will certainly tell them

Because that picture is from the 2013 wildfires there.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2013/jun/03/picture-desk-live-the-best-news-pictures-of-the-day

It is orange but its not agent: A firefighting plane drops fire retardant on a wildfire in Lancaster, California Firefighters working in darkness doubled containment of a massive wildfire north of Los Angeles to 40 percent overnight, as cool, moist air moved in Monday to replace torrid weather. Photograph: Nick Ut/AP

[Major Nikon]

16. You can say the same about gunpowder

[jberryhill]

26. Or lead

[PeacefulPeavey]

77. Or about dihydrogen monoxide

DHMO is a dangerous chemical and should be banned! When inhaled even in small quantities it causes death!

[ProfessorGAC]

63. So Are Detonatables?

By your logic, everything except a nuke is a chemical weapon.

Aerial bombs and shells: TNT, Torpex, PETN, Tertil, RDX, HMX. All nitrated chemcials.
Ground Munitions: C4, TNT, Tetril. All nitrated chemicals
Rifles: The projectile only comes out of the barrel due to a mixture of chemicals in the casing.
FAE: Ethylene oxide with a blast initiator made of a high explosive like those mentioned above.

And, even in a nuke, there is a high energy chemical explosive that initiates the fission. (Even in a thermonuke, you need the energy of the fission detonation to get the fusion.)

You can't play both sides of the fence.

[Adrahil]

87. Explosives of all types are chemicals used as weapons...

There may be an argument to call these things "chemical weapons," this argument ain't it.

[GulfCoast66]

5. No they are not

Napalm is considered a bomb and at the time agent orange was a legal herbicide.

Might as well consider DDT as a chemical weapon if you consider Agent Orange one.

[MattBaggins]

28. Was zyklon B a chemical weapon?

[SharonClark]

33. If you spray people or their environment with a chemical with the intent of harming them

then it's a chemical weapon.

[brush]

41. Exactamondo! Who are these oh-so-literal people who can see the obvious?

Of the chemicals in question one killed people by melting their skin off and the other was used to get rid of brush and vegetation so soldiers used to using them for cover could be more easily killed.

[sarah FAILIN]

44. The intent was not harming people

We dropped this crap on our own people trying to clear the jungle to make them safer. It was being used as a defoliant, not knowing the long term effects.

[SharonClark]

84. One should assume the long-term affects of something so potent are not positive.

Chemicals are best used cautiously, especially when the long-term affects are unknown.

[sarah FAILIN]

89. Look at the times this was going on

We know a lot more today than we did back then about chemicals and what they do to us. We were all stupid back then

[GulfCoast66]

67. No one spraying or ordering the spraying of agent orange intended it to harm.

It was an herbicide that was later proven to be a carcinogen. Causing long term cancer would be a pretty ineffective way to fight a war especially when your own soldier were the ones effected.

[yortsed snacilbuper]

6. I was on a patrol boat in Viet Nam, we had mortar rounds filled with white phosphorus,

that is some bad shit!

[panader0]

7. Well, are they made of chemicals?

[Adrahil]

88. Everything is made of "chemicals" NT

[UTUSN]

8. Lawrence O'DONNELL just made the point they are, scalding adults and "babies" (code word)

[KittyWampus]

13. They are chemicals but no considered weapons of mass destruction. Not nerve agents.

But if you're skin is melting off because you got drenched in napalm I don't think the distinction matters.

[womanofthehills]

50. Many insecticides are nerve agents

A number of insecticides, including carbamates and organophosphates such as dichlorvos, malathion and parathion, are nerve agents. The metabolism of insects is sufficiently different from mammals that these compounds have little effect on humans and other mammals at proper doses; but there is considerable concern about the effects of long-term exposure to these chemicals by farm workers and animals alike. At high enough doses, however, acute toxicity and death can occur through the same mechanism as other nerve agents. Organophosphate pesticide poisoning is a major cause of disability in many developing countries and is often the preferred method of suicide.[12]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerve_agent

[Ilsa]

20. I would split them into separate categories.

The incendiary is as bad as a chemical weapon, although not a chemical weapon.

Agent Orange is a tool with really bad side effects.

[jberryhill]

25. Is gunpowder? Lead? Steel?

Name a weapon which is not comprised in some sense of chemicals.

If you provide your working definition of "chemical weapon" then it would be simpler to answer the question to your satisfaction.

Napalm is generally considered an incendiary weapon, and Agent Orange an herbicide. But, certainly, lead is itself a toxic chemical. So a definition would be useful here.

[MattBaggins]

30. Zyklon B?

Is not rather convenient that the substances used by us and our allies were defined "as not chemical weapons"?

[MarcA]

35. Good point. Any chemical used to harm others is a chemical weapon.

legalese not withstanding.

[The_Casual_Observer]

29. Flame throwers are apparently banned these days.

The got a lot of use in Vietnam and WW2.
War should be banned altogether.

[SharonClark]

34. wiki

A chemical weapon (CW) is a specialized munition that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on humans. According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), "the term chemical weapon may also be applied to any toxic chemical or its precursor that can cause death, injury, temporary incapacitation or sensory irritation through its chemical action. Munitions or other delivery devices designed to deliver chemical weapons, whether filled or unfilled, are also considered weapons themselves."[2]

[sarah FAILIN]

49. They dropped this stuff as a mist from an airplane, 3 gallons/acre

The defoliant itself is a chemical, but not a chemical weapon because it doesn't actually cause death on contact. Years down the road, you may eventually die from complications of exposure but it is not instant.

We dropped this stuff on our own training bases to clear the foliage. We dropped it here..
https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/locations/tests-storage/usa.asp

[HoneyBadger]

57. 3 gallons sounds like enough to kill every person in the state

On February 5, addressing the UN Security Council, secretary of state Colin Powell, now famously, clutched between his fingers a tiny phial representing concentrated anthrax spores, enough to kill thousands, and only a tiny fraction of the amount he said Saddam Hussein had at his disposal.

The Vietnamese government has its own symbolic phial that it, too, flourishes, in scientific conferences that get little publicity. It contains 80g of TCCD, just enough of the super-toxin contained in Agent Orange to fill a child-size talcum powder container. If dropped into the water supply of a city the size of New York, it would kill the entire population. Ground-breaking research by Dr Arthur H Westing, former director of the UN Environment Programme, a leading authority on Agent Orange, reveals that the US sprayed 170kg of it over Vietnam.

[sarah FAILIN]

62. the difference is intent

Before they knew what it would do to humans, they only intended to clear the jungles, not kill people with it.

[HoneyBadger]

65. When did they realize that agent orange and napalm could kill humans?

I assume that they put safeguards in place to protect humans from harm. Anything else might make it seem like weaponizing them.

[sarah FAILIN]

66. I'm not talking about napalm

They denied the effects of Agent Orange for years when our servicemen started getting sick.
My point is they wouldn't have dropped it on their own troops if they knew the after effects. We dropped this stuff right here in the US because we were stupid enough to think it just cleared brush.

[HoneyBadger]

72. Did we drop it on people in the US?

[Lee-Lee]

76. Actually yes it was used a defoliant in the US including by the USDA

The USDA and US Forest Service both used it in a test and operational mode. The TVA and Georgia Power both used it to control vegitation around power line right of ways in TN and GA.

Lots of other places too:

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/locations/tests-storage/usa.asp

[ronnie624]

48. We can rest easy.

The three and a half million people the US government murdered in Indochina, were not killed with what is defined as 'chemical weapons', therefore it's not as bad as the crimes committed by Assad.

And besides, we're America, fuck yeah.

[HoneyBadger]

54. The victims consider AO to be a chemical weapon

They are a big part of the War Crimes Museum. And victims associations have filed to have them classified as such.

[HoneyBadger]

55. Still newswothy

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H.R.334 - Victims of Agent Orange Relief Act of 2017
115th Congress (2017-2018) | Get alerts

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Sponsor: Rep. Lee, Barbara [D-CA-13] (Introduced 01/05/2017)
Committees: House - Veterans' Affairs; Energy and Commerce; Foreign Affairs
Latest Action: 02/03/2017 Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs. (All Actions)
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Introduced in House (01/05/2017)



115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 334

To direct the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide assistance for individuals affected by exposure to Agent Orange, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 5, 2017
Ms. Lee (for herself, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Hastings, Mr. Ellison, Mr. Conyers, and Mr. Serrano) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL
To direct the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide assistance for individuals affected by exposure to Agent Orange, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Victims of Agent Orange Relief Act of 2017”.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) Findings.—Congress makes the following findings:

(1) From 1961 to 1971, approximately 19,000,000 gallons of 15 different herbicides were sprayed over the southern region of Vietnam. The agents included 13,000,000 gallons of Agent Orange, 4,500,000 gallons of Agent White, 1,000,000 gallons of Agent Blue, 420,000 gallons of Agent Purple, and relatively smaller quantities of the other herbicides. Many of the herbicides, including Agents Orange, Purple, Green, Pink, Dinoxol, and Trinoxol contained the toxic contaminant dioxin (TCDD). Agent Blue contained high levels of arsenic. The aforementioned 15 herbicides, including the contaminant dioxin, are usually collectively referred to as Agent Orange.

(2) Between 1968 and 1971, a total of 6,500 spraying missions were carried out in an area of about 1,500,000 hectares, which represented about 10 percent of South Vietnam.

(3) Studies show that between 2,100,000 and 4,800,000 Vietnamese and tens of thousands of Americans were exposed to Agent Orange during the spraying. Many other Vietnamese were or continue to be exposed to Agent Orange through contact with the environment and food that was contaminated or as offspring of those exposed who now suffer from illnesses and disabilities.

(4) Today, there are still dozens of environmental hot spots that continue to contaminate the food, soil, sediment, livestock, and wildlife with Agent Orange. In fact, concentrations of TCDD as high as 1,000 mg/kg were found in soil and sediment samples more than 30 years after Agent Orange was sprayed in Vietnam.

(5) Agent Orange exposure continues to negatively affect the lives of veterans of the United States Armed Forces, Vietnamese people, Vietnamese-Americans, and their children. The lives of many victims are cut short and others live with disease, disabilities, and pain, often untreated or unrecognized.

(6) The Department of Veterans Affairs recognizes certain illnesses and diseases, including AL amyloidosis, chronic B-cell leukemia, chloracne, diabetes mellitus type 2, Hodgkin’s disease, ischemic heart disease, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Parkinson’s disease, acute and sub-acute peripheral neuropathy, porphyria cutanea tarda, prostate cancer, respiratory cancers, and soft-tissue sarcomas as associated with the spraying and use of Agent Orange by the United States Armed Forces during the Vietnam era.

(7) No similar consideration has been given to affected Vietnamese or Vietnamese-Americans.

(8) The Department of Veterans Affairs provides compensation for many severe birth defects among the children of American women veterans who served in Vietnam. The list of birth defects covered includes but is not limited to: Achondroplasia, cleft lip, cleft palate, congenital heart disease, congenital talipes equinovarus (clubfoot), esophageal and intestinal atresia, Hallerman-Streiff syndrome, hip dysplasia, Hirschsprung's disease (congenital megacolon), hydrocephalus due to aqueductal stenosis, hypospadias, imperforate anus, neural tube defects, Poland syndrome, pyloric stenosis, syndactyly (fused digits), tracheoesophageal fistula, undescended testes, and Williams syndrome. Affected children of these women veterans receive medical care and other benefits.

(9) The only birth defect recognized for the children of male American veterans is spina bifida (but not occulta), resulting in most affected children receiving no benefits.

(10) No assistance has been given to the children of male or female Vietnamese or Vietnamese-Americans connected with their exposure, or their parent’s or grandparent’s exposure.

(11) The Institute of Medicine for the past several years has noted that “it is considerably more plausible than previously believed that exposure to the herbicides sprayed in Vietnam might have caused paternally mediated transgenerational effects … attributable to the TCCD contaminant in Agent Orange.”. In recent years, scientific studies have identified likely epigenetic links between exposure to toxins and birth defects and developmental disorders in subsequent generations. Some of the children and grandchildren of exposed persons (Americans, Vietnamese, and Vietnamese-Americans) who were in southern Vietnam during the Vietnam era likely suffer from disorders, birth defects, and illnesses related to Agent Orange.

(12) Dating back to 2007, the United States has engaged in environmental remediation of contamination at the Da Nang and Bien Hoa airports, and provided funds for public health and disabilities activities for individuals residing in some affected areas.

(13) April 30, 2017, is the 42th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.

(b) Purpose.—It is the purpose of this Act to address and remediate the ongoing problems and concerns that arose or will arise from the use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam era.

SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE FOR INDIVIDUALS AFFECTED BY HEALTH ISSUES RELATED TO EXPOSURE TO AGENT ORANGE.

(a) For Covered Individuals.—The Secretary of State shall provide assistance to address the health care needs of covered individuals. Such assistance shall include the provision of medical and chronic care services, nursing services, vocational employment training, and medical equipment.

(b) For Caregivers.—The Secretary of State shall provide assistance to institutions in Vietnam that provide health care for covered individuals. Such assistance shall include—

(1) medicines and medical equipment;

(2) custodial care, home care, respite care, and daycare programs;

(3) training programs for caregivers;

(4) medical, physical rehabilitation, and counseling services and equipment for illnesses and deformities associated with exposure to Agent Orange; and

(5) reconstructive surgical programs.

(c) For Housing And Poverty Reduction.—The Secretary of State shall provide assistance to repair and rebuild substandard homes in Vietnam for covered individuals and the families of covered individuals. The Secretary of State shall provide micro grants and loans to facilitate subsistence payments and poverty reduction for covered individuals and families of covered individuals.

(d) For Environmental Remediation.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State shall provide assistance to remediate those geographic areas of Vietnam that the Secretary determines contain high levels of Agent Orange.

(2) PRIORITY.—In providing assistance under this subsection, the Secretary of State shall give priority to heavily sprayed areas, particularly areas that served as military bases where Agent Orange was handled, and areas where heavy spraying and air crashes resulted in harmful deposits of Agent Orange.

(e) Administrative Authorities.—The Secretary of State shall—

(1) provide assistance under this section (other than assistance under subsection (d)) through appropriate Vietnamese community and nongovernmental organizations and, where necessary, public agencies;

(2) provide assistance under this section to affected persons in all areas of Vietnam, including rural, mountainous, and urban areas;

(3) encourage strategic alliances between private and public sector partners as a business model for achieving the goals of this section; and

(4) seek out and actively encourage other bilateral donors as well as United States and foreign business enterprises in Vietnam to support the goals of this section through development assistance and corporate philanthropy programs.

(f) Covered Individual Defined.—In this section, the term “covered individual” means an individual who—

(1) is a resident of Vietnam; and

(2)(A) is affected by health issues related to exposure to Agent Orange which took place during the period beginning on January 1, 1961, and ending on May 7, 1975, or who lives or has lived in or near those geographic areas in Vietnam that continue to contain high levels of Agent Orange as described in subsection (d); or

(B) is the child or descendant of an individual described in subparagraph (A), and is affected by health issues described in subparagraph (A).

SEC. 4. PUBLIC RESEARCH.

The Secretary of State and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall identify and provide assistance to support research relating to health issues of individuals affected by Agent Orange. Such research should include recommended focus provided by the United States Institute of Medicine as identified in their biennial Veterans and Agent Orange Update, and supported by the active involvement of schools of public health and medicine located in the United States, Vietnam, and other interested countries.

SEC. 5. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES HEALTH ASSESSMENT AND ASSISTANCE FOR VIETNAMESE-AMERICANS.

(a) Health Assessment.—The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall make grants to appropriate public health organizations and Vietnamese-American organizations for the purpose of conducting a broad health assessment of Vietnamese-Americans who may have been exposed to Agent Orange and their children or descendants to determine the effects to their health of such exposure.

(b) Assistance.—The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish centers in locations in the United States where large populations of Vietnamese-Americans reside for the purpose of providing assessment, counseling, and treatment for conditions related to exposure to Agent Orange. The Secretary may carry out this subsection through appropriate community and nongovernmental organizations or other suitable organizations, as determined by the Secretary.

SEC. 6. PROVISION OF BENEFITS FOR CHILDREN OF MALE VETERANS WHO SERVED IN VIETNAM WHO ARE AFFECTED BY CERTAIN BIRTH DEFECTS.

(a) In General.—Subchapter II of chapter 18 of title 38, United States Code, is amended—

(1) by striking “woman Vietnam veteran” each place it appears and inserting “Vietnam veteran”;

(2) by striking “women Vietnam veterans” each place it appears and inserting “Vietnam veterans”; and

(3) in the heading of such subchapter, by striking “WOMEN”.

(b) Access To Records For Research Purposes.—Section 1813(b) of such title is amended—

(1) by striking “The Secretary” and inserting “(1) The Secretary”; and

(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:


“(2) The Secretary shall require any health care provider with whom the Secretary enters into a contract under this subsection to provide access to the medical records of individuals who receive health care under this section to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purpose of conducting research or providing support for research into the intergenerational effects of Agent Orange exposure.”.

(c) Clerical Amendment.—The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by striking the item relating to subchapter II and inserting the following new item:

“SUBCHAPTER II. CHILDREN OF VIETNAM VETERANS BORN WITH CERTAIN BIRTH DEFECTS”.
(d) Effective Date.—The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date that is 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 7. DEADLINE FOR IMPLEMENTATION.

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall each complete a plan for the implementation of the provisions of this Act, and the amendments made by this Act, applicable to such Secretary and shall issue a request for proposals, if applicable. The Secretary of State, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall each implement the provisions of this Act applicable to such Secretary by not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 8. QUARTERLY REPORTS.

Not later than 30 days after the last day of each fiscal quarter beginning on or after 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall each submit to Congress a report on the implementation of the provisions of this Act applicable to such Secretary during the immediately preceding fiscal quarter.

SEC. 9. DEFINITION.

For purposes of this Act, the term “Agent Orange” includes any chemical compound which became part, either by design or through impurities, of an herbicide agent used in support of the United States and allied military operations in the Republic of Vietnam.

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[malaise]

56. Yes and so is depleted uranium which the US used in Iraq

One more thing - the US nuked Japan.
Mattis lied in public.

[hack89]

78. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) would disagree with you.

DU is nasty stuff and needs to be banned in military weapons but it is not a chemical weapon.

[ronnie624]

59. The primary purpose of the defoliants used in Indochina was to kill food crops.

http://www.truth-out.org/progressive-picks/item/2592-chemical-warfare-agent-orange/news/item/

[Voltaire2]

64. It is important for some to insist that the USA does no wrong.

In particular our police and military are beyond reproach.

[Lee-Lee]

74. By definition and legally no they are not and it's absurd to claim they are

If you want to stretch it and say "but napalm is a chemical and used as a weapon" you are stretching to the point of absurdity because quite literally EVERYTHING is a chemical. So using the definition people use to call them chemical weapons makes every explosive a chemical weapon and every bullet a chemical weapon and even a medical sword- because steel is by definition an alloy of chemicals- a "chemical weapon".

[hack89]

75. Not according to international law

Napalm is an incendiary weapon while Agent Orange is a defoliant and is not even considered a weapon.

[Demsrule86]

82. Napalm is and was a chemical weapon ...it burned people alive...

horrible...as for agent orange, it is a chemical used to deforest areas so one could make it through what was often a jungle...but it kills too... and spreads.