Rome, Italy

In what could clear the clouds of political uncertainty, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Monday withdrew his leadership bid and revived his People of Freedom (PDL) party's alliance with the far-right Northern League. The move came just weeks before next month's General Elections.

"An agreement has been signed," said Berlusconi in an interview with Telelombardia television, adding, "I was sure we'd reach a deal because a party must be realistic, and not renewing our alliance would have been bad for us, the League and Italy."

League's President Roberto Maroni said that Berlusconi would head the coalition and confirmed that he has withdrawn his candidacy for the coveted post. "While there is no candidate yet for premiership, I can explicitly say it will not be Berlusconi," he added.

According to Rome's John Cabot University's politics professor Franco Pavoncello, the so-called historic deal is actually a kind of forced marriage as both parties would have been in trouble without this coalition.

Berlusconi's PDL needs Northern League for victory in the north, while scandal-hit Northern League cannot either survive without the PDL.

 

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