Russia's energy interests are behind Ataka's support for ruling party GERB, according to Ivan Kostov, leader of the right-wing Democrats for Strong Bulgaria, DSB, party.

In an interview for the morning broadcast of Nova TV, the DSB leader stated that nationalist Ataka party and its leader Volen Siderov were directly linked to the Russian embassy in Bulgaria and were defending Russian interests.

Kostov was positive that the relations between ruling party GERB and only parliamentary ally, Ataka, had turned extremely sour after the incident in front of the Banya Bashi mosque in Sofia on May 20.

Insisting that what happened overstepped the boundaries of a mere row, Kostov qualified the clash as a "severe breach of European values".

"At my request, the Parliament should come up with a declaration condemning the actions of Ataka. I would also like to call on Muslims not to yield to the provocation", he added.

Kostov explained that the forthcoming declaration would not call for banning Ataka, terming the move as "legally impossible".

According to the rightist leader, the document would seek justice, urging Bulgaria's judiciary to fulfill its duty and punish the guilty.

In Kostov's words, Ataka uses religion for political purposes, which contradicts the Bulgarian Constitution. "We do not want to see religious tensions escalating in Bulgaria", the DSB leader cautioned.

Kostov ruled out the idea that there was ground for Islamic fundamentalism or dormant cells of that extremist branch in Bulgaria, disproving claims of competent institutions .

"We can not afford to turn into a target because somebody lost his temper ", Kostov snapped.

Regarding the WikiLeaks cable about Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, he said that its significance did not go beyond creating a certain context for making political decisions.

In that line of thought, Kostov reminded that Borisov was yet to say whether Russia had imposed an ultimatum on Bulgaria for a gas supply cut.

When asked about how he would go about such an ultimatum, Kostov said "My choice would be for Bulgaria to lead a neutral policy without being bullied. This can happen if a terminal for liquefied natural gas is built, if existing reservoirs are filled and the Nabucco gas pipeline project is allowed to gain traction".

Kostov declined to comment on the poll of the MBMD research agency about politicians' approval ratings. He dismissed the work of polling agencies in Bulgaria, saying that they were deeply corrupt.

"Support for the government has been eroded", Kostov stressed, adding that the right-wing Blue Coalition, comprising the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) and Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) and was ready for elections. Kostov outrightly rejected the option of 3-in-1 elections (general, presidential and local elections) in autumn.

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