Italy’s anti-establishment Five Star Movement and the far-right League clinched the approval of Sergio Mattarella, the president, for the launch of a populist government, all but ending a political crisis that has gripped the country for nearly three months and spooked investors.
Giuseppe Conte, the designated prime minister for the alliance, presented a list of ministers to Mr Mattarella at the Quirinal Palace in Thursday night, which the Italian president accepted, paving the way for the new government to be sworn in on Friday afternoon.
The agreement caps a stunning rise to power for two populist forces in the eurozone’s third-largest economy, who ran as rivals in Italy’s March 4 general election but united this month to lead a government that will test the country’s relationship with the EU.