The World - News from July 6, 1986

Amintore Fanfani, the president of the Italian senate, met for an hour with caretaker Prime Minister Bettino Craxi in an effort to resolve a dispute over who will lead a new government following the collapse of the longest-standing of 44 Italian governments since World War II. President Francesco Cossiga gave Fanfani the mandate to “explore” possible compromises in the nine-day-old dispute between Craxi’s Socialist Party and the powerful Christian Democrats. Craxi tendered the resignation of his coalition June 27 after rebels in his government voted against him on a finance decree.