Italy's Berlusconi: Putin's 'mouthpiece'
Simpatico is not a word that normally associates itself with Vladimir Putin, but Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister, sees something in his Russian counterpart that sets him apart from the mass of ordinary men.
"A gift from God," Berlusconi called Putin last month (and, to be accurate, Putin's hand-picked successor as president, Dmitry Medvedev, as well).
That's the kind of remark that has long had American diplomats in Rome wondering about their Italian ally. They note the extraordinarily cordial friendship Berlusconi has with Putin, and observe that he "appears to be increasingly the mouthpiece" of Putin in Europe, according to documents disclosed by WikiLeaks.
Italy has significant energy deals in the works with Russia, including the construction of gas pipelines that could give Russia even more control of the European market than it already has. But the prime ministerial bromance is not strictly business. It's personal, too.
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