Wellington - New Zealand Veterans' Affairs Minister Rick Barker will lead his country's first official delegation of war veterans to Vietnam between February 24-29, it was announced on Tuesday. Barker said the delegation of six vets had been invited by the Vietnamese government-sponsored Veterans' Association of Vietnam.
"The purpose of the visit is to explore possible connections between veterans' groups in New Zealand and Vietnam and how this could be facilitated," Barker said.
The delegation will include Terry Culley, president of New Zealand's Ex-Vietnam Services Association,and Robin Klitscher, president of the Royal New Zealand Returned Services Association.
The visit will centre on Hanoi and include a visit to a Friendship Village, which veterans from a number of countries have established to provide support to Vietnamese veterans.
