Italy's president appointed former International Monetary Fund official Carlo Cottarelli as interim prime minister on Monday with a task to try and form a new government and bring order to political and constitutional turmoil.
"The President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella this morning received at the Quirinal palace Carlo Cottarelli, to whom he gave the mandate to form a government. Cottarelli decided to accept," a presidential spokesman told reporters.
The euro zone's third-largest economy has been seeking a new government since inconclusive March elections, with anti-establishment forces abandoning their efforts to form a ruling coalition at the weekend after a standoff with the president over their choice of economy minister.
