Japan to give America US$500,000 to recover from Hurricane Katrina

The Japanese government will provide aid worth up to US$500,000 (Ђ403,615) to the United States in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a government spokesman said Friday.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said Japan will give US$200,000 (Ђ161,445) to the American Red Cross.

It also is ready to provide up to US$300,000 (Ђ242,170) in emergency supplies such as tents, blankets and power generators, he said.

On Thursday, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi sent a letter of condolences to U.S. President George W. Bush. Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura also sent letters to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the governors of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi, hard hit by the hurricane, the AP reports.