Vietnam and the United States have launched the second phase of a dioxin clean-up in the central city of Danang, where millions of litres of toxic herbicides were stored during the war between the former enemies.

The U-S sprayed the defoliant known as Agent Orange over large areas of Vietnam’s southern jungle during the Vietnam War to flush out Viet Cong guerrillas.

An estimated 4.5 million Vietnamese people were potentially exposed to Agent Orange.

The Vietnam Red Cross estimates that three million Vietnamese people were affected, including 150,000 children born with birth defects.

Vietnamese victims’ groups have long blamed the toxic residue for deformities and disease.

Though Washington has disputed the link between dioxin exposure and bad health, the US government has committed to help clean up toxic land in the communist nation.

The countries, whose relations have warmed in recent years, began treating 45,000 cubic metres of soil contaminated with dioxin at Danang Airport, on Tuesday.

The task is expected to be finished by mid-2017.

The first phase of the clean-up, which also treated 45,000 cubic metres, was completed in May.

– with other agencies