The government on Tuesday hit back at opposition party Akel after the latter pilloried President Nikos Christodoulides for his upcoming trip to Israel.

Government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis effectively criticised Akel for lacking savvy when it comes to diplomatic relations.

“The Republic of Cyprus exercises a multi-faceted, responsible and balanced foreign policy, guided solely by the desire to uphold its national interests and enhance its international presence,” he said.

The spokesman said the president’s visit to Israel, as well as to Ramallah in the West Bank, “fall within this framework of strategic contacts and parity-based dialogue with all regional nations, without ideological blinders, without selective moral sensibilities”.

Letymbiotis went on to accuse Akel of inconsistency; he reminded the party that when it was in power (2008 to 2013) it had called Israel “an important strategic partner”.

He said that whereas criticism of the government is welcome, Akel is rather engaging in “ideological activism” and “behaving like a non-governmental organisation”.

The statement added the government “will allow no one to drag it into a foreign policy of sloganeering or turn foreign policy into a tool for ideological narratives”.

The government was reacting to an earlier terse statement put out by Akel, which slammed the president for meeting “the wanted war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu.”

This, Akel asserted, “exposes our country and our people. It damages the credibility of the Republic of Cyprus. It puts the government of Cyprus side by side with the perpetrators of the genocide of the 21st century.”

Given the Netanyahu government’s conduct – the bombing of Gaza, the starvation of the civilian population, and acts of violence against UN personnel – Cyprus should stand with international law “instead of hobnobbing with war criminals and the butchers of children,” Akel said.

The party will hold a protest outside the presidential palace at 7pm on Friday.

President Nikos Christodoulides will fly to Israel on Sunday, returning on the evening of the same day.

Contacted by the Cyprus Mail, government sources said the president would meet with “the Israeli leadership”.

They would not confirm whether Christodoulides would see Netanyahu “as the schedule of the various meetings have not been fixed yet”.

However it’s virtually certain the president will meet the Israeli prime minister, and also most likely Israeli president Isaac Herzog.

Christodoulides is also seeking to arrange a meeting with Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the Palestinian National Authority, in Ramallah.