ROME: Former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi urged Italy’s splintered parties Wednesday to get behind him as he tries to form a new government and lift his country out of the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic.

After receiving a mandate from President Sergio Mattarella to open talks on a national unity government, Draghi stressed the urgency of resolving the political chaos at such a “difficult moment”.

There has been no fully functioning government in Rome for weeks, as Giuseppe Conte’s ruling coalition slowly collapsed in a row over the handling of Covid-19 and the resulting deep recession.

Conte quit last week but stays on in a caretaker capacity while Draghi — famous for promising to do “whatever it takes” during the eurozone debt crisis — tries to build his own majority in parliament.

“I am confident that... unity will emerge and with it the ability to give a responsible and positive answer to the appeal of the president,” Draghi said after talks at Mattarella’s lavish palace in Rome.