Serbian President Nikolic Abandons Bid for Second Term

After a tense few days, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has decided not to run for another term in this spring's presidential elections.

The decision was announced after a meeting on Monday between Nikolic and current Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, who emerged last week as the favoured presidential candidate of the Progressive Party to which they both belong.

"We have agreed to continue leading the state together. We are going to discuss posts after our victory in the elections," Nikolic told the daily newspaper Kurir after the tete-a-tete.

"We will continue to raise Serbia up. Aleksandar will be the candidate for president," Nikolic added.

The meeting was held after local media reported last week that Nikolic had decided to run for another term, despite his party having voted to nominate Vucic as its presidential candidate. 

Although media reports since then have focused on an apparent conflict emerging between the two men, a joint statement released after the meeting emphasised their past cooperation and said they had agreed to work closely in the future to ensure the security of the region.

"The president and prime minister completely agree that Serbia is facing serious challenges and threats that require a joint and comprehensive response from the state leadership," said the statement.

"The unity of all state officials in resolving regional problems and avoiding a large-scale crisis are the priority tasks of President Nikolic and Prime Minister Vucic," it added.

It described a shared stance between Nikolic and Vucic on key topics such as the renewal of Bosnia's lawsuit against Serbia for genocide, which was announced on Friday, and towards proposals for Kosovo's  "so-called membership" in...