Japan grants fresh aid to Burma

[moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Japan grants fresh aid to Burma 
 07:03 a.m. Jun 02, 1997 Eastern 

 RANGOON, June 2, (Reuter) - Japan, a major creditor of Burma,
 has granted a two billion yen ($17.2 million) loan to the Burmese
 military government, the Japanese embassy in Rangoon said on
 Monday. 

 The loan brings Japan's total loans to Burma to 102.9 billion yen
 ($884.4 million) over the past two decades, Japanese diplomatic
 sources said. 

 Japan latest aid to debt-ridden Burma comes just after the
 Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed to give
 Rangoon, as well as Cambodia and Laos, membership in July. 

 ASEAN at present groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines,
 Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand. ^REUTER@