On the recordFebruary 2, 2016
Mr. President, I want to take a moment today to recognize the Montagnard community in my State of North Carolina and in other places across the Nation. I am proud to say that North Carolina is home to the largest population of Montagnards in the Unites States and home to the largest population of Montagnards outside of Vietnam. Many Americans may not know about the history behind the United States's special relationship with the Montagnards, which is a history that goes back to the days of the Vietnam war. The Montagnards are an indigenous tribespeople of the central highlands of Vietnam, and during the Vietnam war, it was the Montagnards who were trained by the CIA and Special Operations Forces to fight alongside our troops against the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong. At their own great risk, the Montagnards provided critical intelligence support to our troops on the ground, no doubt saving countless American lives. After the war, the United States took in hundreds of Montagnards into our country as refugees because of the severe persecution they faced from the Vietnamese Government for that very reason. While this indeed is a long overdue recognition, I will be submitting later this week a Senate resolution recognizing their service and sacrifice.…





