MFA Spokesman's comments in response to media queries on the 1st trilateral meeting on transboundary haze between the senior officials of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore

In response to media queries on the 1^st trilateral meeting on transboundary haze between the senior officials of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in Jakarta on 26 July 2013, the MFA Spokesman said:

“PS (Foreign Affairs) Chee Wee Kiong led an inter-agency delegation comprising officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, National Environment Agency and Attorney General’s Chambers for this 1^sttrilateral meeting on transboundary haze between the senior officials of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

The Indonesian delegation to the meeting was led by Indonesian Foreign Ministry Director-General for ASEAN Cooperation I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja and the Malaysian delegation was led by Malaysian Foreign Ministry Secretary-General Tan Sri Mohd Radzi bin Abdul Rahman.

During the meeting, Mr Chee noted that the meeting was a follow-up to the agreement by the Foreign Ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore at the sidelines of the 46^th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Brunei on 29 June.  This was what Minister for Foreign Affairs K Shanmugam had earlier referred to as the Trilateral Cooperative Process.  This process is not meant to duplicate existing platforms for environmental cooperation such as the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution.  It will complement and enhance the work already being done as an additional channel for the three countries to enhance their collaboration.

At the meeting, the senior officials reviewed the outcomes of the 15^th MSC, received an update on Indonesia’s efforts to address the fires that cause the haze, and considered future areas for cooperation.  Singapore and Malaysia acknowledged Indonesia’s ongoing efforts to combat the haze, including the mobilization of national resources to tackle the issue.  Both countries commended Indonesia for its commitment to expedite the process of ratification of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution.  Mr Chee encouraged Indonesia to continue its efforts and noted that the primary responsibility for taking action against parties responsible for illegal land clearing practices lay with Indonesia. 

Mr Chee renewed Singapore’s standing offer of assistance to Indonesia in putting out the fires, which includes an aircraft for cloud seeding operations, and provided high resolution satellite pictures of the hotspots.  The meeting recalled the agreement between Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at their Leaders’ Retreat in April 2013 to renew bilateral environmental cooperation in Jambi.  In addition, Indonesia stated its willingness to share meteorological data through the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) data exchange and also its willingness to share data on air quality with the ASEAN Sub-Committee on Meteorology and Geophysics (ASCMG) as well as the ASEAN Specialized Meteorological Centre.

Noting the decision of the 15^th MSC, the senior officials welcomed a proposal by Singapore that the three countries undertake a trial of the ASEAN Sub-Regional Haze Monitoring System (HMS) where Singapore would share access to the HMS with Malaysian and Indonesian experts to review and provide feedback on the system.  This would allow the three countries to consider how best to enhance cooperation on the HMS as a joint haze monitoring system among MSC countries, with digitized land-use maps and concession maps of fire-prone areas that cause transboundary haze to be shared on a Government-to-Government basis subject to the ASEAN Leaders’ approval at their Summit in October 2013.

The senior officials agreed to provide an update on their discussions to the three Foreign Ministers at the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat in Hua Hin from 13-14 August 2013, before the Ministers report to the three Leaders at the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in October 2013.”        

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

27 JULY 2013