HANOI (AP) - Following a landmark conference on Agent Orange, officials from Vietnam and the U.S. agreed Sunday to a framework for researching the health and environmental effects of dioxin, the defoliant's toxic compound.

Anne Sassaman, of the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and Nguyen Ngoc Sinh, head of Vietnam's National Environmental Agency, signed a memorandum of understanding that laid out specific priorities for future research.

U.S. Ambassador Raymond Burghardt hailed the agreement and conference as a new step forward for the two countries.

"It is too soon to predict what the eventual benefits will be, but it is certain that Americans and Vietnamese working together in pursuit of a common interest can achieve a great deal,'' he said.

Hundreds of scientists from Vietnam, the United States and other nations had gathered for a three-day conference, which ended Wednesday, to examine and share the current information and research on Agent Orange.

The historic conference, jointly sponsored by the U.S. and Vietnam, was the first time the two governments had agreed to address the topic of the wartime defoliant at a scientific forum.

Key areas for research would include spontaneous abortions, miscarriages, congenital malformations, neurological disorders, cancers and diabetes, among other illnesses.

Researchers said the dioxin still lingered in the environment.

Between 1962 and 1971, the U.S. sprayed 19 million gallons of herbicides over southern Vietnam to destroy jungle cover for Communist troops. About 55 percent of that, or nearly 10.5 million gallons, was Agent Orange.

Many American veterans and Vietnamese believe Agent Orange is responsible for a variety of illnesses, including birth defects, neurological disorders and cancer.

Copyright 2002 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.