Serbia is struggling to evade recession, create jobs and cut spending in an economy that has a 24 percent unemployment rate, falling currency and mounting foreign debt. Tadic said the post of the prime minister "is now a very hot seat" because these are "very challenging times."

Nikolic said Serbs will be getting a stable country that will no longer have to choose between extreme pro-Eastern or pro-Western options.

"The citizens will no longer be afraid when elections come," Nikolic said after his meeting with Tadic. "There are no more bad guys in Serbia."

___

Associated Press writer Jovana Gec contributed.