BELGRADE, Serbia-Serbia's pro-Western president has declared victory in the country's closely contested parliamentary elections.

President Boris Tadic has told cheering supporters that his Coalition for a European Serbia eked out a victory in a hard-fought battle with the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party.

Tadic describes Sunday's win as "convincing" and says it shows that a majority of Serbia's citizens want to join the European Union.

But Tadic also has reached out to Serbs angry at Kosovo's declaration of independence in February. He says his government would never recognize Kosovo's statehood.