LUCA NICOLESCU GETS MANDATE TO FORM GOVERNMENT

BUCHAREST, OCTOBER 5 /SRNA-RIA Novosti/ - Romanian President Nicușor Dan appointed diplomat Luca Nicolescu as prime minister-designate on Monday and tasked him with forming a new government.

It is the fourth attempt to end a months-long political crisis.

"Following consultations with the parties, I have decided to nominate Luca Nicolescu to form the new government. He will maintain a pro-Western course," Dan told a press conference in Bucharest.

The Social Democratic Party withdrew from the governing coalition in April and backed a no-confidence motion against the government of Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan.

Parliament has since rejected two nominees for prime minister, while a third withdrew before a vote was held.

Nicolescu is a former Romanian ambassador to France and a career diplomat.

Under the Romanian Constitution, he has 10 days to form a government and secure a vote of confidence in parliament, requiring at least 233 votes in the 466-seat legislature.