The World - News from June 26, 1988

Japanese Foreign Minister Sosuke Uno said in Cairo that his country wants to expand its role in the Middle East from an aid donor to a political partner in promoting peace. Uno, on his first trip to the Middle East, arrived in Cairo on Friday after talks in Damascus, Syria, and Amman, Jordan. He is due in Israel today. “We recognize that peace cannot be achieved through the payment of money alone,” he said after an hourlong meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Japan gave Egypt $996 million in development aid from 1960 to 1986, Japanese Embassy officials said. “In addition to economic contributions, we are ready to listen to the opinions” of Middle East leaders, Uno said.