Indonesia has lodged a "strong protest" with Singapore for demanding that Indonesia-based companies suspected to be linked to the region-wide haze explain measures they have taken in tackling fires on their land, a Foreign Ministry spokesman disclosed…

"We stress that the law by Singapore essentially should not harm trade and good cooperation between the two countries," he added.

Errant pulp and paper companies have been blamed for causing forest and peatland fires in Indonesia that led to thick, choking haze throughout the region in September and October last year.

Since then, the National Environment Agency (NEA) has given notices to six of these Indonesia-based companies, asking them to outline the steps that they are taking to put out and prevent fires on their land.

In the latest move, the NEA said on Wednesday that it has obtained a court warrant against the director of an Indonesian company who failed to turn up for an interview with the authorities in Singapore despite being served a legal notice to do so when he was in the country…