Silvio Berlusconi, former Italy prime minister,
recently returned to mainstream politics following a brief hiatus. Upon his
return, Berlusconi says that he has reconnected with Russian President Vladimir
Putin, who sent him 20 bottles of vodka and a very “sweet” letter on his
birthday.

Putin and Berlusconi are old friends. But the
former prime minister has returned to drudgery of Italian politics primarily to
help a right-wing coalition to secure power, a coalition that has pledged to
support Ukraine in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

“I reconnected with President Putin – a little bit,
well a lot. For my birthday he sent me 20 bottles of vodka and a very sweet
letter,” Berlusconi reportedly told lawmakers, according to Italy’s LaPresse
news agency. “I have been declared by him as the first of his five real
friends,” Berlusconi added.

The comments, of course, have generated a great
deal of backlash, including from Giorgia Meloni, the right-wing leader whose
party’s roots go back to the Fascist party run by Benito Mussolini, and also
the person trying to weave a coalition to form a new government.

Who is Silvio Berlusconi?

Silvio Berlusconi was born on September 29, 1936 in
Italy’s Milan. His father, Luigi Berlusconi (1908-1989) was a bank employee
while his mother, Rosa Bossi (1911-2008) was a homemaker. Silvio Berlusconi is
one of three children, his sister, Maria Francesca Antonietta died in 2009.
Berlusconi also has a younger brother – Paolo.

Berlusconi studied law at the University of Milan,
graduating with honours in 1961. He did not serve the mandatory one year in the
Army required of Italian youths at the time.

Silvio Berlusconi rose to prominence in Italian
politics in 1994, prior to which he was already an established businessman. He
became the prime minister for the first time after winning the 2001 Italian general
elections. Berlusconi was the first premier to be elected without any prior
experience serving a government office.

Berlusconi was re-elected Italy’s prime minister in
2006 and 2008.

In 2019, Silvio Berlusconi expressed his desire to
run for candidacy in the European Parliament election in Italy. He won and was
the oldest member of the assembly.

Berlusconi’s political positions have led to the
coinage of the word ‘Berlusconismo’. The word is used in Italian media circles
as a synonym for entrepreneurial optimism.