PUTRAJAYA, Sept 30 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is still awaiting a response from Indonesia regarding efforts to send assistance to help extinguish forest and land fires in the country that have caused cross-border haze.
MADANI Government Spokesperson Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said the haze issue was discussed in the Cabinet meeting, and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi also briefed the meeting on the outcome of his recent meeting with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
"He (Ahmad Zahid) raised the matter on behalf of the government regarding various issues, especially Malaysian assets that could potentially be utilised to help put out the fires in Indonesian territory.
"At this point, Wisma Putra has yet to receive a response to the note sent by Wisma Putra to Indonesia. So, we are still following official channels as well as direct and continuous discussions between top leadership," he said at a press conference after the Cabinet meeting here today.
Previously, Ahmad Zahid said that Malaysia had received the green light from Indonesia to send assistance to help tackle the forest and land fires causing the cross-border haze.
According to Ahmad Zahid, the agreement was given during his meeting with the Indonesian President at Istana Hambalang in conjunction with a working visit to Jakarta.
The assistance offered by Malaysia includes a Bombardier CL-415MP aircraft, three helicopters, and 52 officers and personnel from the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA), the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).
Meanwhile, Fahmi expressed hope that three major events in the country - the Gulf Air Bahrain Formula 1 Grand Prix, the Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) 2026 cycling tour, and the Standard Chartered Marathon - will proceed smoothly despite the haze.
"We pray that the haze situation will become increasingly under control and, as we can see, rain does occasionally fall from day to day," he said.
-- BERNAMA