NICOSIA, Cyprus — The president of bailed-out Cyprus has launched a stinging attack on the country's central bank chief and is to begin proceedings to have him ousted for not doing his job properly.

President Nicos Anastasiades said his "patience has run out" with central bank governor Panicos Demetriades and that he would take the matter to the Supreme Court after gathering evidence backing up his accusation.

Demetriades shot back, saying in a statement that there's an attempt to undermine him and to stymie the central bank's independence.

The feud between center-right Anastasiades and Demetriades — an appointee of the country's previous, communist-rooted president — boiled over Thursday after months of tensions. It has simmered since March when Cyprus clinched a financial rescue deal from international creditors that crushed its banking sector.