Vladimir Putin and Silvio Berlusconi

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he has reestablished relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to La Presse’s report, Berlusconi made the statement during a speech to his supporters.

The former Prime Minister of Italy said that Putin congratulated him on his birthday:

At the same time, the press service of the Forward Italy party, headed by Berlusconi, later denied these reports.

Relations between Putin and Berlusconi deteriorated due to the conflict in Ukraine. In April of this year, Berlusconi said he was “deeply disappointed and saddened by the behavior of Putin, who takes a very serious responsibility to the world.” He added that he has known Putin for 20 years and previously always considered him a “man of democracy and peace”.

In his speech to his supporters, Berlusconi also suggested that if Ukraine joins NATO, it would lead to nuclear war. Silvio Berlusconi has served as Prime Minister of Italy four times: his first term began in 1994 and the last one ended in 2011. Berlusconi has been a Member of the European Parliament since 2018. He is also the owner of a large Italian media company Mediaset SpA.

In 2012, Berlusconi was charged with financial fraud for which he was sentenced, but was acquitted in 2013.