A senior Indonesian diplomat said on Wednesday that dialogue “must not stop” among Asean members, amid a diplomatic row between Jakarta and Singapore over transboundary haze.
Ties between the Southeast Asian neighbours have been tense after wildfires in Indonesia blanketed the city state in toxic smog for months. Complaints from Singapore over the air quality were met with sharp rebukes from Indonesian officials.
Despite a visit to Jakarta by Singapore’s Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan last week, tensions continue to simmer, casting a shadow over coming Association of Southeast Asian Nations meetings in Manila.
Asked whether the regional bloc remained united despite the dispute, Ina Hagniningtyas Krisnamurthi, director general for Asean cooperation at Indonesia’s foreign ministry, said diplomacy was a continuous process.