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NEWS - Japan Considering Giving Mor



Subject: NEWS - Japan Considering Giving More Aid to Asia

Japan Considering Giving More Aid to Asia

               Reuters
               27-JUL-99

               SINGAPORE, July 27 (Reuters) - Japan will send a
               fact-finding mission to six Asian countries to see how it
can
               help economic recovery by adding to an $80 billion aid
               package already promised, its foreign minister said on
               Tuesday. 

               "The mission will visit six east Asian states from late
August
               to early September," Masahiko Komura told a meeting of
               foreign ministers from Southeast Asia, the United States,
               China, Russia, the European Union, South Korea and other
               nations. 

               He said the mission would visit South Korea, Thailand and
               Indonesia, the three nations hit hardest since the Asian
               financial crisis began in 1997. It would then go to
Malaysia,
               the Philippines and Vietnam. 

               Singapore told the meeting of the Association of South
East
               Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers and key global
               powers that despite signs of recovery, the region was not
yet
               out of the woods. 

               Foreign Minister S. Jayakumar said many Asian reform
               programmes still needed to run their course. 

               "Our determination to stay the course and guard against
               complacency will be the clearest demonstration of our
               resolve to strengthen our economic structure and
               institutions," he said. 

               Komura said Japan's mission would seek to "understand
               what approaches Japan and the Asian countries should take
               to ensure a fundamental recovery of the Asian economies
               and sustainable development." 

               He did not say how much additional aid was being
               considered. 

               Komura said about $68 billion of the $80 billion aid
package
               had been disbursed. He did not detail plans for the
               remainder. 

               The foreign minister said strengthening the global
financial
               system was an "urgent issue" as enormous flows of capital
               on a global scale were a significant element in the Asian

               crisis. 

               He said in light of this development, "Japan is focusing
its
               efforts on the further internationalisation of the yen." 

               U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright told the
meeting
               Japan had an enormous role to play and that Washington
               supported Tokyo's efforts to restore domestic demand-led
               growth. 

               Myanmar foreign minister Win Aung said it was a crucial
time
               for ASEAN to rebuild its economy.