Questions are raised about the Defence Minister’s statements in Israel

Statement by AKEL C.C. Spokesperson Giorgos Koukoumas

8 May 2023, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia

The Defence Minister’s statements during his visit to Israel raise serious questions about the government’s policy.

The Middle East problem is not limited to what the Israeli government has stated to the Defence Minister of the Republic of Cyprus Mr. Yiorgallas. Next to the injuries and damage of properties to Israelis, there are the thousands of dead, the millions of refugees and the countless numbers of imprisoned Palestinians. There is a people who is fighting for their freedom. The root of the Middle East problem lies in the decades-long Israeli occupation and colonisation of the Palestinian territories. It lies in Israel’s refusal to comply with the resolutions of the United Nations, together with its refusal to accept an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Cyprus, a victim of Turkish occupation and colonisation, quite rightly reacts when governments and international organisations bypass and gloss over the essence of the Cyprus problem. It justifiably and correctly has international law as the guiding principle of its foreign policy. Positions such as that expressed by the Defence Minister negate Cyprus’ position morally, politically and diplomatically.

The Christodoulides government is called upon to provide an answer as to whether it intends to change the long-standing position of the Republic of Cyprus on the Middle East problem, which is based on the relevant Resolutions of the United Nations.