Indonesia appreciates M'sia & S'pore's offer to help tackle haze: ST report

Indonesian officials have expressed gratitude for the offers of assistance from Singapore and Malaysia in tackling the country's ongoing haze problem, according to The Straits Times. Singapore's Minister for Environment and Sustainability has stated that the nation is aware of Indonesia's efforts to combat forest fires and is ready to provide support.

Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has also spoken with Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto about the haze situation and expressed his readiness to extend cooperation. The Indonesian Ministry of Forestry has detected 437 hotspots across the region as of Oct. 9, a 50% increase from the previous day. The low visibility caused by the haze is hindering aircraft operations, according to Indonesia's acting spokesperson for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency.

While the country has not confirmed whether it has accepted Singapore's offer of assistance, Indonesia's Deputy Forestry Minister Rohmat Marzuki stated that the government has already achieved its rice crop production target three years early, reducing the need to clear more forest land.

Brief written by urgent.news from Mothership's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.