Japan Announces Aid for Former East Bloc Nations

TOKYO — The Japanese government, after talks with U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle, announced Friday that it would grant $300 million in loans to Central and Eastern Europe.

The Japan Export-Import Bank plans to grant up to $100 million each to Czechoslovakia and Hungary in unsecured loans, while the government will increase funding by up to $100 million to the Japan International Development Organization for equity investments in private-sector projects in the region.

Quayle, in Tokyo for ceremonies marking the 20th anniversary of the return of Okinawa to Japan by the United States, praised the action as a “significant development that clearly shows the strong interest in global partnership by Japan and the United States.”