Former President of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi has been granted a mandate to form a new government after meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
The previous Cabinet resigned in January, after the centrist Italia Viva party led by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi left the governing coalition, criticizing current Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte for poor handling of the pandemic and economic recession.
President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella has met with Professor Mario Draghi to whom he has given the mandate to form another government. Professor Draghi has reserved the right to accept”, a spokesman for the presidential palace said in a statement.
Following the meeting, Draghi confirmed he will be the next Italian PM, expressing hope that the Italian parliament will demonstrate unity to face the challenges to the country.
The economist was asked to form a new Cabinet after Giuseppe Conte handed in a formal resignation letter to the president.
Conte decided to step down even though he survived a vote of confidence in the parliament, as his coalition failed to secure a majority due to the withdrawal of Italia Viva, led by former PM Matteo Renzi, who scrutinized and tackled former Italian PM Salvini.
Draghi was born in Rome in 1947 and studied economics at La Sapienza University, graduating in 1970, later earning a PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1976.
He served as the governor of the Bank of Italy in 2006-2011 and as the president of the European Central Bank between 2011 and 2019.
He has also been honored with a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic and with a Grand Cross of Merit from Germany.
Sputnik / ABC Flash Point Europa News 2021.
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