Forecasts predict poor weather will soon be pushed towards the Indian Ocean
BEIJING: Malaysians could see some relief from the haze within the next two weeks if a change in wind direction helps disperse smoke from the fires in Indonesia, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (pic).
The Deputy Prime Minister said the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) had forecast that wind surges would shift towards the Indian Ocean.
“MetMalaysia’s director-general informed me that the wind surges are expected to shift towards the Indian Ocean within the next two weeks.
“I hope this will help ease the haze, at least in Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak, as well as elsewhere,” he said.
The Deputy Prime Minister is on a five-day working visit to Beijing and Tianjin to deepen bilateral cooperation in areas including security, law enforcement and technical and vocational education and training.
“Malaysia has offered assistance, but Indonesia has deployed more than 19,000 personnel.
“I don’t think they will require assistance from Malaysia, given the manpower and equipment they already have to tackle the fires,” he said, adding that wind surges in Kalimantan were also forecast to change direction towards the South China Sea.
Ahmad Zahid said Malaysia was monitoring the situation through MetMalaysia and hoped the forecasted changes in wind direction would bring relief.
On Oct 11, Malaysia offered to help Indonesia resolve the transboundary haze issue rather than resorting to legal action.
Haze from Indonesian fires has affected Malaysia and Singapore, raising concerns over air quality and public health.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Prime Minister said Malaysia was looking to deepen cooperation with China to combat cyber fraud, strengthen cross-border investigations and recover stolen assets as both countries step up efforts to tackle transnational crime.
“Cyber fraud presents several challenges because it does not affect China alone. Chinese nationals are among its victims, and I believe bilateral cooperation between our two countries is crucial in tackling this problem,” he added.
Earlier, Ahmad Zahid met with Chinese State Councillor and Minister of Public Security and Disaster Management Wang Xiaohong to discuss various matters including security and combating cross-border crimes.
Malaysia and China will also strengthen intelligence-sharing and coordinate investigations and law enforcement operations.
“Cooperation between our police force and China’s National Narcotics Control Commission is very close.
“Beyond intelligence-sharing and enforcement, we are adopting newer methods to obtain early information on drug smuggling operations and the setting up of facilities to process substances into drugs.
“This work is already under way and will be strengthened further,” he said.
