Mongolia Weighs Compensation Claim Against KDDI Over Grassland Fire

TREE NEWS update: Mongolia’s government said it will investigate responsibility for a large grassland fire in a protected area and may seek compensation from the parties involved, Deputy Prime Minister Nomtai Bayar said. The fire broke out on the 8th in the Numrug Nature Reserve in Dornod Province after a convoy of more than 10 people and five vehicles from MobiCom, a Japanese-controlled Mongolian telecom operator, entered the reserve; the blaze was extinguished on the 16th. KDDI, MobiCom’s parent, acknowledged on the 20th that the fire was linked to its subsidiary’s Japanese executives and apologized on its website on the 23rd while insisting no laws were broken.