Belka says Poland may still be willing to take loans from World Bank

Poland is still interested in World Bank loans but only on the scale of a few hundred million dollars yearly, stated Finance Minister Marek Belka yesterday, during his visit to the United States. The cabinet minister had already discussed central bank independence with the head of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, and is still to meet with U.S. government officials, International Monetary Fund and World Bank representatives as well as a group of local businessmen. "The United States is one of our most important economic partners and is interested in our plans," said Belka. He promised to improve the economic climate in Poland for all investors, both domestic and foreign, and mentioned reform of Poland's widely criticized fiscal system. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B2) M.K.