Japan deploys equipment to Indonesia's Borneo to help fight wildfires causing toxic haze

MEMPAWAH, Indonesia (AP) — A Japanese military transport ship docked on the island of Borneo on Thursday as part of a disaster relief mission to help fight wildfires in Indonesia that are causing a toxic haze impacting people’s health in other countries.

Japan deployed 300 crew members, landing ship JS Kunisaki and three CH-47 helicopters, which arrived in Kalimantan on the island of Borneo.

The mission in Indonesia marked the first known overseas firefighting operation carried out by the Japan Self-Defense Forces, or JSDF.

“To this end, we will learn from the Indonesian military’s operational experience and work in coordination and cooperation with them, striving to ensure that the Indonesian people can lead stable lives as soon as possible,” Col. Syunji Nakahara, the commander of the disaster relief activities, said at a port in Mempawah district.

Japan and Indonesia have been also increasingly strengthening their military cooperation ties, with the two sides discussing the Japanese sale of its used destroyers.

Indonesia has been plagued by forest and land fires for decades, but an intensifying El Niño pattern this year and a prolonged dry season worsened the impact of the fires.

Toxic haze and smoke have caused a health crisis in neighboring countries.

The smoke has drifted as far as the Philippines, more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) away, and breached Malaysia’s emergency-level threshold for air pollution, forcing authorities to declare an emergency last week in a town in Sarawak state on Borneo.

The air pollution has also affected several areas on the island of Sumatra, forcing schools to suspend learning activities at school. The toxic haze has affected more than 1.4 million students across the country.

Japan's firefighting efforts will support Indonesian authorities in reaching areas that are difficult for ground teams to access.

The JSDF said in a statement on Thursday that the three CH-47 Chinook helicopters from Japan will start conducting firefighting operations on Borneo as soon as preparations are complete.

“Through these operations, we will dedicate ourselves to supporting the affected people of Indonesia and preventing further damage,” a written statement from JSDF said on Thursday.

Indonesian authorities have escalated firefighting efforts in several provinces as they seek to contain the blazes. The efforts have involved aircraft provided by countries in Southeast Asia and beyond, including Japan, the United States, Russia, Australia, Canada and Ukraine.

Indonesia’s Forestry Ministry recorded more than 202,000 hectares (nearly 500,000 acres) of burned land between January and July, almost three times Singapore’s size.

Mari Yamaguchi contributed to this report from Tokyo.

Crew members huddle on the deck of Japanese tank landing ship JS Kunisaki amid haze from wildfires, after its arrival at Kijing Port in Mempawah, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Japanese tank landing ship JS Kunisaki approaches Kijing Port amid the thick haze from forest fires in Mempawah, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Crew members prepare one of the Chinook helicopters which will be used to help battle forest fires on Kalimantan Island, on the deck of Japanese tank landing ship JS Kunisaki after its arrival at Kijing Port in Mempawah, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Dock workers walk amid the thick haze from forest fires at Kijing Port in Mempawah, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Crew members have a briefing near one of the Chinook helicopters which will be used to help battle forest fires on Kalimantan Island, on the deck of Japanese tank landing ship JS Kunisaki after its arrival at Kijing Port in Mempawah, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva has again been refused permission to compete internationally following a second round of checks after her status as a neutral athlete was revoked.

The International Skating Union on Thursday said Valieva was one of four Russian skaters, all 2022 Olympians, who were deemed not to “satisfy the requirements to participate as Individual Neutral Athletes.”

The others are men's skater Mark Kondratiuk and the ice dance team of Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin. No specific reasons were given in the four cases.

“The ISU will not comment further on individual cases while any applicable appeal rights remain available,” it said.

The latest obstacle to Valieva's career comes more than four years after disputes about her positive doping test overshadowed the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

Valieva and the other skaters can appeal within three weeks to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. There was no immediate comment from Valieva or the Russian figure skating federation.

The ISU is allowing more Russians to compete as neutral athletes this season, after most had been barred from its events following the invasion of Ukraine. It states they are “presumed eligible unless they fall within the disqualifying criteria.”

That has meant skaters such as Valieva have been considered eligible briefly after filing the paperwork for neutral status, only to have that status revoked soon after.

The ISU barred skaters from Russia and its ally Belarus in 2022. It allowed a limited number to return for the Milan Cortina Olympics and a qualifying event last season. Two Russian figure skaters, Adeliia Petrosian and Petr Gumennik, competed at the Olympics as neutrals without national flags and symbols but neither won a medal.

The ISU rules say skaters may be refused neutral status if they are serving with military or security forces, have previously participated in military operations against Ukraine or have “actively and publicly supported that war” since 2022.

In a separate matter, Valieva is also pursuing legal action over the process around her doping ban, which ended late last year.

A document published by the European Court of Human Rights on Monday showed Valieva filed a claim against Switzerland over a Swiss supreme court decision against her last year. At that time, she was attempting to have the suspension overturned.

Valieva’s claim to the European court alleges that the Swiss court infringed her rights by refusing to consider alleged new evidence in her favor, the ECHR document says. At the Swiss supreme court, Valieva’s lawyers presented an Associated Press news article from September 2024 to claim the World Anti-Doping Agency suppressed evidence.

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FILE - Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva competes at the Russian Jumping Championships in Moscow on Jan. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, File)