Jacinda Ardern Slams Trump For Lying About Coronavirus ‘Surge’ In NZ

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has slammed U.S. Prime Minister Donald Trump for unnecessarily lying about the country experiencing an “out-of-control” coronavirus surge after having spent more than 100 days with no new reported cases of COVID-19.

Ardern showed her disappointment with Trump and accused him of exaggerating the new coronavirus outbreak in New Zealand as a “huge surge.”

"Anyone who is following will quite easily see that New Zealand's nine cases in a day do not compare to the United States' tens of thousands," Ardern said on Tuesday, Aug, 18. "Obviously, it's patently wrong," she added, pointing out to Trump and his statement exaggerating the severity of the situation.

Ardern, who has been called “anti-Trump,” has been lauded for her efforts and quick responsiveness which earned global recognition and appreciation for the country. The local transmission of novel coronavirus was completely eradicated and there was not even a single new case of COVID-19 for more than 100 days before a new cluster was identified recently.

Trump made comments concerning the new coronavirus cases in New Zealand on Monday, during his election rally in Minnesota.

"You see what is going on in New Zealand. They beat it; they beat it. It was like the front page (news), they beat it because they wanted to show me something" Trump said during his address to the reporters.

He further cited a “big surge in New Zealand” and said that "It's terrible. We don't want that."

The U.S. continues to remain the hardest-hit country when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic has claimed that the lives of more than 170,000 Americans and more than five million people are affected. The next in line in Brazil, followed by India.