The Andreotti III government was a single-party Christian Democrat government, sustained by the abstention of five parties in Parliament, from the Communists to the Liberals. It was fragile and by late 1977 it was already in crisis. To rebuild a majority, the PSI demanded that the PCI take responsibility by voting for the government, while the PSDI would participate only if PCI and PSI reached an agreement. Moro and Berlinguer took concrete steps to bring the PCI closer to the government, but Western countries rejected any openness to the Communists, a position reiterated by the new US ambassador Gardner. Within the DC, resistance was strong: the Chamber group leader Flaminio Piccoli stressed that most MPs opposed the Communists in the majority, and the Senate leader Bartolomei repeated the same concern. Piccoli, deeply pessimistic, spoke of “an air of an unsolvable crisis” and even wrote a letter to Moro urging reflection on the gravity of the situation, but chose not to send it.

On February 27, 1978, Moro met the parliamentary groups and delivered a decisive speech, convincing them of the need for a “measured, moderate, and meaningful agreement” with the PCI, to last until the presidential elections later that year. He secured DC support. Andreotti noted in his diary that Moro deserved credit for the mediation, praising his ability to address objections while insisting on continuing negotiations in the party’s interest. Donat Cattin, among the strongest opponents of PCI involvement, called it Moro’s political masterpiece. Andreotti even offered Moro the premiership, which he declined.

The agreement led to the Andreotti IV Government, a Christian Democrat administration supported by DC, PCI, PSI, PSDI, and PRI. However, disagreements within the PCI over ministerial appointments threatened the fragile balance. To preserve consensus, Moro sent Berlinguer a message on the eve of the government’s presentation to Parliament, aiming not to undo the delicate work achieved within the DC. The next morning, on his way to the Chamber of Deputies for the confidence vote—amid tensions in both DC and PCI—Moro was kidnapped by the Red Brigades, who also killed his five-man escort.