No Evidence of Captive Americans in Vietnam, Gen. Vessey Reports

A leader in the search for U.S. servicemen missing since the Vietnam War said Tuesday that the possibility of finding them alive in Southeast Asia seems far less likely today than it did when he took on the search four years ago.

Gen. John W. Vessey told the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs that no evidence has been found to suggest that any Americans are still held captive in Vietnam, Laos or Cambodia.

“The probability (of finding U.S. servicemen) is considerably lower than I thought it was when I took on this job,” said Vessey, who is presidential emissary to Hanoi for POW/MIA affairs.

But the U.S. government is pressing the search, Vessey said. “It’s my view that our people are bending over backwards” to be receptive to reports of surviving Americans, he said.

Vessey also denied charges of an attempted cover-up by the Defense Department, saying there have been no attempts to influence his judgment.

Defense Secretary Dick Cheney also testified before the committee Tuesday, reaffirming the Defense Department’s commitment to continue efforts to resolve as many cases as possible.

“The governments of Indochina have consistently denied holding any Americans,” he said. “We do not, and never will, accept their denials as the last word. We intend to keep the pressure on.”

More than 2,000 U.S. servicemen are listed as missing in action or prisoners of war 18 years after the end of U.S. military operations in Vietnam.