Police Chief on Indonesia's Forest Fires: There is Foreign Involvement

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - National Police Chief General Suyudi Ario Seto revealed that there is foreign involvement concerning companies suspected of causing forest and land fires (karhutla) in Indonesia.

"There is indeed foreign involvement, yes, there is foreign involvement," the police chief stated during a press conference after a meeting at the Palace in Jakarta on Monday (19/10/2026).

However, Suyudi mentioned that the investigation into foreign involvement is still ongoing.

Currently, the police are investigating 98 reports related to karhutla.

"And we are sorting through them, identifying which are related to foreign parties and which are not," he asserted.

He only confirmed that there was foreign involvement regarding companies suspected of causing the karhutla.

However, he did not provide details about the country of origin of these companies.

"Yes, there is a neighboring country," he noted.

On Neighboring Countries

Two neighboring countries, Malaysia and Singapore, have already responded to the haze issue stemming from karhutla in Indonesia.

The Singaporean government sent a notification letter to seven companies suspected of being related to the forest and land fires (karhutla) in Indonesia.

Through the notification based on the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act (THPA), the seven companies were requested to take action and preventative measures against the fires.

Singapore's Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu announced this step during a press conference on Friday (16/10/2026).

Quoting Malaysian media, Sinar Harian, on Sunday (18/10/2026), Malaysia's Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan asserted that Malaysia cannot remain silent in the face of the uncontrolled wildfires in Indonesia.

"It is indeed difficult. The Japanese team previously could not do much and have returned to their country. However, we as an affected country cannot just stand by," Mohamad said.

According to him, the Malaysian government is looking for the most suitable form of assistance given the circumstances on the ground, especially as several fire points are located deep in rural areas.

The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) in Singapore has activated a Level 3 warning status for the southern ASEAN region due to the high risk of thick haze spreading to neighboring countries.

Quoted from Harian Metro Malaysia on Saturday (17/10/2026), ASMC announced the activation of the Level 3 warning for the southern ASEAN region through its official website.