Italy's 5-Star founder, former PM mend rifts, agree to relaunch party

FILE PHOTO: Founder Beppe Grillo speaks at the 5-Star Movement party's open-air rally at Circo Massimo in Rome, Italy, October 21, 2018. REUTERS/Max Rossi/File Photo

ROME (Reuters) -Italy's former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and the founder of the co-ruling 5-Star Movement, comedian Beppe Grillo, reached an agreement on Sunday to overcome recent differences over the future of the party, paving the way for its relaunch.

The dispute between Grillo and Conte, who had agreed to take charge of the struggling party after his coalition collapsed in January, has threatened to cause problems for the national unity government led by Mario Draghi.