September 9, 2026 | 05:57 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Malaysia has offered to deploy firefighting assets to help Indonesia tackle forest and land fires that have caused haze in the region, but is awaiting approval from Indonesian authorities.
Malaysian government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil said the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) and the Foreign Ministry had briefed the Cabinet on Wednesday, September 9, about the assets available to assist Indonesia.
The agencies had also conveyed the list of available assets to Indonesian authorities, Fahmi said.
Fahmi said Malaysia remained prepared to assist Indonesia, but any deployment would depend on approval from Jakarta.
"However, so far there has been no confirmation on any form of cooperation to use Malaysian assets to help put out the fires," Fahmi, who is also Malaysia's Communications Minister, said at a press briefing in Putrajaya, as cited by News Strait Times.
He said Malaysia had conveyed the offer through its embassy and Foreign Ministry, while Nadma had made the necessary preparations.
"For us to deploy our assets to assist, we need the permission by the Indonesian authorities," Fahmi said.
Malaysia's offer comes as forest and peatland fires in Indonesia's Kalimantan and Sumatra regions have contributed to transboundary haze, affecting air quality in parts of Malaysia.
The fires have intensified amid dry conditions in Indonesia. The resulting smoke has spread across borders, prompting concern in neighboring countries.
Anwar Calls for Stronger ASEAN Haze Response
The offer also follows Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's call for ASEAN to strengthen its existing mechanism for dealing with transboundary haze.
Anwar said Tuesday that ASEAN ministers needed to give the issue serious attention because haze could affect public health, particularly among children and babies.
Malaysia has previously sought closer regional coordination over haze, which has repeatedly affected Southeast Asia during periods of severe forest and peatland fires.
The haze has also disrupted activities in Malaysia, particularly in Sarawak on Borneo, which borders Indonesia's Kalimantan.
Fahmi said the haze situation in Sarawak appeared to have improved slightly, but conditions remained dependent on weather, hotspots and open burning, particularly in neighboring countries.
Malaysia had declared an emergency in Sarawak's Serian district last week after air pollution linked to fires in Indonesia reached hazardous levels, although the emergency was later lifted as air quality improved.
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