OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 44, 1 March 1996

HUNGARIAN DEFENSE MINISTER IN ISRAEL. Gyorgy Keleti on 29 February met
with Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres to discuss cooperation on
security matters and the Middle East peace process, international and
Hungarian media reported. The two men also discussed the possibility of
the Israeli air defense companies upgrading Hungarian Air Force MiG-21
fighter planes. -- Zsofia Szilagyi

USAID MAY CLOSE DOWN IN HUNGARY. The US Agency for International
Development (USAID) may close down its Budapest office before 2000.
International agencies quoted office head Tom Cornell as saying "Hungary
is progressing faster than expected and thus needs less and less
American assistance." The organization has spent some $230 million on
aid programs since 1991 and has an annual budget of between $15 and 21
million for the coming years. USAID's Budapest bureau provides financial
and technological aid in the financial sector and supports several non-
governmental organizations, Cornell said. -- Zsofia Szilagyi

[As of 12:00 CET]

Compiled by Jan Cleave