The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand has stressed that Thailand and its surrounding countries are committed to addressing the worsening problem of transboundary haze, which affects both countries.
Following a recent trilateral meeting between Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai gave the public his assurance that senior officials from all three countries will engage in-depth discussions on the subject of the prevention of burning activities.
He emphasized that neighboring countries are also struggling with this widespread issue and are working to find solutions as quickly as possible. In addition, Thailand will contribute its expertise on the pressing matter by putting forward the idea of establishing community-sized power plants on a smaller scale.
The Deputy Prime Minister responded to a question regarding a case in which citizens were going to launch a lawsuit against the Prime Minister for failing to fix the situation by explaining that the issue had not arisen under the present administration. He pointed out that it has, in point of fact, been an issue that has persisted for the past two decades.
The Minister of Don stated unequivocally that efforts are being made by the ASEAN bloc to solve this issue, and that these efforts have been ongoing. He went on to say that after the pandemic was over, the problem became even worse since people went back to their normal activities, which are what cause air pollution.
The minister also stated that the government is working on solutions to the issue, which will be implemented either temporarily or permanently.
At the upcoming conference of ASEAN, this topic will be revisited and debated again.
