Berlusconi's foreign policy is Russocentric

In view of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's upcoming state visit to Russia the liberal-conservative daily Corriere della Sera complains that Italy's foreign policy is too focused on Russia: "[Barack] Obama has replaced [George W.] Bush in the White House. And [Vladimir] Putin has also changed places, even if he continues to pull the strings of Russian power as prime minister [and no longer as president]. Has the Berlusconi government taken these developments into account? To us it seems it hasn't, and it seems the prime minister would do well to rethink his foreign policy, which has long since appeared too russo-centric. … A couple of examples, for instance as regards form: No one likes it when [Silvio] Berlusconi … all too often describes himself as 'Putin's advocate' (his own words). This damages Italy's credibility."

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