Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs, came out with a terse tweet on May 19 that left little room for interpretation.

Politicians should stick to facts!
There is no “Singapore variant”. https://t.co/SNJaF7wkwC https://t.co/pNgw4bkV4H

— Vivian Balakrishnan (@VivianBala) May 19, 2021

He said:

"Politicians should stick to facts! There is no “Singapore variant”."

Vivian also referenced a tweet by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who called on India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ban flight services with Singapore and prioritise vaccination for children.

The reason? Kejriwal claimed, without citing evidence, that the Covid-19 variant "found in Singapore" was "extremely dangerous for children."

Inaccurate tweet by Delhi Chief Minister

Kejriwal's tweet was inaccurate on two counts.

Firstly, the B.1.617.2 variant of Covid-19 was first detected in India, and that strain has been detected in cases in Singapore. There is no such thing as a "Singapore variant".

The Nature article that Vivian included in his tweet backs this up, asserting that the variant was first detected in India.

Unfortunately, Indian media outlets such as the Hindustan Times and TV shows picked up on Kejriwal's tweet and ran with it, also using the inaccurate term "Singapore variant."

Secondly, a spokesperson from Singapore's health ministry said on May 18 that this B.1.617.2 variant is associated with several clusters in Singapore.

While the B.1.617.2 variant appears to be more transmissible, none of the children who contracted the virus were seriously ill, according to Education Minister Chan Chun Sing.

MFA statement

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) released a statement on the situation on the same day:

"MFA regrets 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 a third wave of infections in India. MFA is disappointed that a prominent political figure had failed to ascertain the facts before making such claims. MFA met the High Commissioner of India P Kumaran this morning to express these concerns.

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."

Domestic politics

Kejriwal is the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, which controls the state legislature in Delhi.

The party is different from PM Modi's BJP, and their erstwhile main opposition, the Indian National Congress.

The governments of Singapore and India have worked closely to help each other fight the Covid-19 crisis in both countries.

In Parliament on May 10, Vivian elaborated how Singapore is contributing vital supplies to India as it battles the newest outbreak.

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Top image from Vivian Balakrishnan's Twitter.