Mohamad Hasan says diplomacy first in haze crisis, warns enforcement risks severing Indonesia ties

Politics & Governance Calculating...

🇲🇾 Malay

🇨🇳 Mandarin

🇮🇳 Tamil

↩️ Show Original

Kritik
16 Oct 2026
60
SubCategory | Government Policies

Mohamad Hasan says diplomacy first in haze crisis, warns enforcement risks severing Indonesia ties

By Malay Mail

SEREMBAN, Oct 16 — Malaysia will continue to use diplomatic channels and Asean mechanisms to address the transboundary haze issue with Indonesia through a phased approach that prioritises its people’s interests and health, without jeopardising bilateral relations, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

He said discussions between leaders and regional channels are the preferred approaches to addressing sensitive issues involving neighbouring countries, rather than legal enforcement measures or the issuance of diplomatic notes.

“We have not reached that stage yet. It is easy to talk about taking legal enforcement action, but doing so would mean we were prepared to sever relations.

“We have not reached that point, so there is no need to issue a diplomatic note. Such a note is a last resort,” he told reporters after presenting contributions to senior citizens and assistance for further studies in the Rembau parliamentary constituency here yesterday.

“I have instructed the Foreign Ministry’s secretary-general to take this up, and was informed yesterday that a coordination meeting will be held to discuss how Malaysia can help Indonesia tackle the fires. The Indonesian government is making concerted efforts to put them out, but the task is not easy,” he said.

Mohamad said the Japanese assistance team had also been forced to pull out because of difficulties accessing the fire sites.

“Our helicopters cannot operate either, as the haze is so thick that flying would be dangerous,” he said, adding that visibility is less than 50 metres, making flying extremely dangerous.

In a related development, Mohamad said Malaysia will submit a non-paper at the upcoming Asean Senior Officials’ Meeting and Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting as part of efforts to strengthen regional mechanisms to address transboundary haze.

The move also aims to enable the haze issue to be discussed within the natural disasters framework, he said, paving the way for Asean to strengthen its regional response and cooperation.

The media had previously reported that Malaysia would raise the issue of transboundary haze at the Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting ahead of the 49th Asean Summit in Manila, the Philippines, next month, to discuss more effective regional mechanisms to address the problem. — Bernama

Source: foreign-minister-insists-diplomacy-first-in-haze-crisis-warns-enforcement-risks-severing-indonesia-ties/239268

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official stance of Kritik.com.my. As an open platform, we welcome diverse perspectives, but the accuracy and integrity of contributed content remain the responsibility of the individual writer. Readers are encouraged to critically evaluate the information presented.

AI Summary

Analyzing article content...

AI-generated summary of key points

0 Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to comment!

Court Politics Donald Trump Martial Law South Korea Selangor International Business Summit 2025 Tariff Strategy Economic Reforms Trade Diversification Supply Chain Resilience Export Promotion US Malaysia Trade Fire Gas Pipeline Water

Grow Your Business With Kritikal News

Reach a wider audience and boost your sales — advertise your product here.