Bulgaria should seek an increase in compensation received for the closing of two units of its Kozloduy nuclear power plant, Bulgarian news agency BTA reported on Sunday, citing Ivaylo Kalfin, the deputy prime minister and foreign minister.

Bulgaria should radically change its behavior in the European Union, Kalfin, who leads the list for European elections for the Coalition for Bulgaria, said at an election campaign meeting in Sofia's Yuzhen Park borough.

According to the foreign minister, only five out of Bulgaria's 18 MEPs have worked sincerely for Bulgaria. All five were representatives of the left, Kalfin said.

A different spirit was needed, where MEPs should give precedence to national interests over party interests, when taking decisions related to budget, support for a solution to the economic crisis, subsidies to farmers, as well as a decision to demand an increase of compensations Bulgaria received for the closure of two Kozloduy units, Kalfin said.

The previous governments had agreed to the compensations, because they were accustomed to saying "yes" to anything that occurred, according to Kalfin.

Bulgaria should seek increased compensations because it lost billions, Kalfin said.

Bulgaria was required to shut down the No. 3 and No. 4 reactorsat Kozloduy as a precondition to joining the EU on Jan. 1, 2007. It will have received 550 million euros (715 million U.S. dollars)in compensation by the end of 2009, but Bulgarian authorities have insisted from the start for more funds over a longer period of time.

Source:Xinhua