ABOUT TIME

Obama Pledges $90 Million to Clear the Unexploded Bombs Dropped on Laos by the U.S.

Dropped by U.S. during the Vietnam War.

President Obama said Tuesday the United States will provide $90 million to help Laos remove nearly 80 million unexploded American bombs left over from the Vietnam War. Obama announced the U.S. has an “obligation” to help remove the weapons and laid out plans for a three-year project with the Laotian government. “Villages and entire valleys were obliterated” during the war, Obama said. “Ancient plains were devastated. Countless civilians were killed. That conflict was another reminder whatever the cause, whatever our intentions, war inflicts a terrible toll, especially on innocent men, women, and children.” He added, “The remnants of war continue to shatter lives here in Laos. Many of the bombs dropped never exploded. Over the years, thousands of Laotians have been killed or injured, farmers tending fields, children playing. The wounds, a missing leg or arm, last a lifetime.”