INDONESIA has approved Malaysia’s offer to deploy firefighting assets to help tackle forest and land fires contributing to transboundary haze, particularly affecting Sarawak, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said today.
The approval by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto clears the way for Malaysia to coordinate the deployment of a Bombardier CL-415MP amphibious aircraft, three helicopters and 52 officers and personnel to assist firefighting operations.
Zahid said the cooperation would not be limited to putting out existing fires, with Malaysia and Indonesia also agreeing on longer-term measures to prevent recurring forest and land fires and the resulting haze.
He said the agreement was reached during a two-hour meeting with Prabowo at Istana Hambalang during his three-day working visit to Jakarta.
“As I stated, this is not merely a gesture or a decision by the Malaysian Government through the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) to jointly address this problem only in the short term by extinguishing the fires.
“But we discussed it and an agreement was reached on long-term planning so that the haze problem does not recur as a result of fires.
“Not only in Kalimantan but also in Sumatra and several other regions in Indonesia,” he said at a press conference with Malaysian media in Jakarta today.
Zahid, who is also chairman of the Central Disaster Management Committee, said Malaysia had formally offered the assistance to Indonesian Vice-President Gibran Rakabuming Raka during a meeting last Thursday, including water-bombing operations in affected areas.
He said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan had been tasked with coordinating the assistance with NADMA, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia), Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), Fire and Rescue Department and other relevant agencies.
“As permission has been obtained from President Prabowo, coordination at the ministry, department and agency levels must now be carried out. I hope the Foreign Ministry, in coordinating this, will ensure that all parties involved in the operation work in a coordinated manner,” he said.
Zahid said 1,426 hotspots had been recorded in Kalimantan based on information received by Malaysia, highlighting the scale of the fires and the need for sustained action.
He said Prabowo had also informed him that legal action had been taken against 95 companies found to be involved in open burning in affected areas of Kalimantan.
Asked whether any Malaysian companies were among the 95, Zahid said no information had been provided so far and Indonesian authorities were still examining possible Malaysian involvement.
“The companies are registered under companies registered in Indonesia. There may be, in terms of shareholders, some small proportion of these companies owned by shareholders from Malaysia,” he said.
Zahid said the haze was also affecting Malaysia, particularly Sarawak, making coordinated action between the two countries and other relevant parties necessary to reduce air pollution.
“It involves Sarawak in particular, and the API must be reduced through actions taken by Malaysia and several other countries, and certainly by the disaster management authorities in Indonesia,” he said.
He said Malaysia welcomed Indonesia’s ongoing firefighting efforts, which have also received assistance from several other countries.
“Certainly, as Indonesia’s closest neighbour, Malaysia will not stand aside from this problem and will continue to provide cooperation,” he said. - September 19, 2026
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