Updated

Romania's prime minister says he and the president have agreed to set aside their rivalry for the good of the country, and will stop insulting each other.

Victor Ponta said Wednesday that he and Traian Basescu signed the agreement to cooperate last week after Ponta's center-left alliance won 68 percent of seats in Dec. 9 parliamentary elections.

The enmity between the two men had poisoned the political atmosphere in Romania for months.

Before the election, Basescu had said he would be reluctant to reappoint Ponta, calling him "a pig" and "a compulsive liar." However, Basescu relented and asked Ponta on Monday to form a new government.

The Mediafax news agency quoted Ponta as saying "we won't call each other names and we won't use comparisons to the animal kingdom."