Italian President Sergio Mattarella (Front) addresses a press conference after meeting with Italian prime minister-designate Giuseppe Conte in Rome, Italy, on May 27, 2018. Conte on Sunday remitted his mandate after Italian President Sergio Mattarella nixed his choice of euroskeptic economist Paolo Savona as finance minister. (Xinhua/Alberto Lingria)

By Alessandra Cardone

ROME, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Monday gave mandate to form a government to former International Monetary Fund (IMF) official Carlo Cottarelli, as new prime minister-designate.

Cottarelli, a 64-year-old economist, was summoned on Monday morning by the president, after a bid to form a coalition government by populist parties Five Star Movement (M5S) and League failed on Sunday night.

"The president of the Republic has conferred a mandate to form a government on Carlo Cottarelli," presidential secretary Ugo Zampetti said after the president and the economist met for one hour.

"Cottarelli has reserved to accept."

The former IMF official then confirmed he would try to form a technical cabinet to take care of the country's current affairs and forthcoming domestic and international commitments. His cabinet would anyway need to ask a confidence vote in both houses of the Italian parliament.

"The president asked me to go before the parliament with a cabinet able to lead the country to new elections," Cottarelli said in a short speech after the meeting.

"My plan is to submit to the assembly a program that would include (the approval of) the 2019 budget law later this year, and new elections in early 2019," he explained.

"In case the parliament denies the confidence, the cabinet would stay in charge for current affairs only, leading the country to fresh elections after August."

In this case, the government would remain neutral during the campaign, Cottarelli specified, pledging he would not run for elections, nor would any member of his cabinet.

The former IMF official said he was deeply honored by the task, and would put his best efforts in the bid.

The mandate to Cottarelli followed Mattarella's decision on Sunday to veto a euro-skeptic figure in the role of economy minister, as proposed by anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) and far-right League, the two most-voted parties in March's inconclusive vote.

The decision put an end to the efforts by M5S and League to form a coalition, sparking angry reactions by both populist forces, which accused the president of abusing his role.

Five Star's leader Luigi Di Maio, backed by small far-right Brothers of Italy party, threatened to demand impeachment for the head of state under Article 90 of the constitution.

The two parties had forged a coalition after March elections, on the base of a platform including radical tax cuts, a roll-back in pension reform, a crackdown on irregular migrants, and defiance of European Union (EU) fiscal rules to boost economic growth.