New Delhi: The Singapore Government on Wednesday called in India's High Commissioner to Singapore to convey strong objection to Delhi CM's tweet on "Singapore variant", said the Ministry of External Affairs.
Taking to Twitter, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, "Singapore Government called in our High Commissioner today to convey strong objection to Delhi CM's tweet on "Singapore variant".
"High Commissioner clarified that Delhi CM had no competence to pronounce on Covid variants or civil aviation policy", he added.
Read:Kejriwal appeals Centre to cancel flights from Singapore over virus strain 'very dangerous' for kids
This came after Delhi's Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter on Tuesday and said that a variant of coronavirus in Singapore might hit India in the third wave.
Reacting to this, the Singapore government strongly dismissed the comment by Kejriwal, saying that there is no truth whatsoever in such assertions.
Speaking on the issue, EAM Dr S Jaishankar said that irresponsible comments from those who should know better can damage long-standing partnerships.
"So, let me clarify- Delhi CM does not speak for India", he said in a tweet.
"Singapore and India have been solid partners in the fight against Covid-19. Appreciate Singapore's role as a logistics hub and oxygen supplier. Their gesture of deploying military aircraft to help us speaks of our exceptional relationship @VivianBala", Jaishankar added.
Read:Singapore rejects Kejriwal's tweet on 'very dangerous' Covid strain
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore expressed displeasure regarding the unfounded assertions made on Facebook and Twitter by Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal that a variant of COVID-19 found in Singapore was particularly harmful to children and could cause the third wave of infections in India.
The Ministry said that it is disappointed over a prominent political figure for having failed to ascertain the facts before making such claims.
"MFA met the High Commissioner of India P Kumaran this morning to express these concerns", it added.
As highlighted by MOH in its press release of 18 May 2021, there is no 'Singapore variant'. The strain prevalent in many of the COVID-19 cases in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which was first detected in India, Singapore's foreign ministry added.
