Malaysia Ready to Send Aid to Tackle Forest Fires, Prabowo Welcomes Move

President Prabowo Subianto received a visit from Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi at his residence in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java. One of the key topics discussed during the meeting was cooperation in handling forest and land fires (karhutla).

“Today, I have the honour of receiving a visit from the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia and his delegation; he is an old friend, so he visited me and we discussed various issues,” said Prabost, as seen on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel on Friday (18/09/2026).

Prabowo noted that Malaysia will be sending assistance to handle forest fires in the near future. Malaysia plans to deploy one aircraft, three helicopters, and 52 members of a firefighting team to assist with fire management in Indonesia. Prabowo expressed his openness to receiving this aid.

“Firstly, the Malaysian side has offered assistance, expressing a desire to help us overcome forest fires in Kalimantan. I have responded to this with gratitude and joy,” he stated.

Prabowo assessed that support from friendly nations demonstrates that the issue of forest fires is not solely Indonesia’s concern. In addition to Malaysia, Indonesia has also received assistance from Japan and several other countries that have offered support in handling forest fires.

“We have also received assistance from Japan. Furthermore, several other countries have offered help, so we are very grateful. This is an environmental issue that affects many parties; although the fires are in Indonesia, the impact is felt by our neighbours, so they wish to help us, and we accept this warmly,” he added.

During the meeting, Prabowo was accompanied by Foreign Minister Sugiono, State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi, and Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya.