ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution

[1] The Agreement recognises that transboundary haze pollution which results from land and/or forest fires should be mitigated through concerted national efforts and international co-operation.

Satellite images confirmed the presence of hot spots throughout Kalimantan/Borneo, Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and several other places, with an estimated 45,000 square kilometres of forest and land burnt.

[6] The treaty calls for haze to be mitigated through concerted national efforts and intensified regional and international co-operation in the context of sustainable development.

[5] The official procedure or system of rules that informs this agreement is the 'ASEAN Way' set of region norms and codes of diplomatic conduct characterised by principles of non-interference, consultation, consensus, quiet diplomacy, symbolism, and organizational minimalism.

[8] Additionally, Singapore has offered to start working directly with Indonesian farmers to encourage sustainable practices and minimise the problem over time by "tackling the haze issue at its root".

[9] Indonesia, as the primary haze producing party to the problem,[3] was the last ASEAN country to ratify the agreement in 2014, 12 years after it was first signed in 2002.