New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is not pleased with the picture that US President Donald Trump paints of the corona outbreak in her country.

Trump told his supporters that the coronavirus is rapidly spreading, but Ardern says that is not true.

New Zealand has reported far fewer infections than many other countries, but authorities have recently been forced to declare a lockdown in Auckland.

Trump said at an election rally in Minnesota than it was previously “front-page news” that New Zealand had defeated the virus. Now, according to him, there is again a “terrible” situation. “We don’t want that,” he told his supporters.

Ardern responded with exasperation, saying it is clear Trump’s statements are incorrect. She said anyone who follows the global spread of the virus would immediately see that the “nine cases in a day” in her country is not comparable to the “tens of thousands” in the US.

The two leaders will both have to be re-elected in the next two months, and such bickering is likely to go down well with their constituencies.

New Zealand has determined that 1293 people have contracted the coronavirus. At least 22 patients have died. Authorities in the United States have reported more than 5.4 million corona cases and 170,000 deaths.