Silvio Berlusconi often boasted of his friendship with Putin until Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and created a storm last month when he said Putin had been pushed into the war and wanted to put “decent people” in charge of Kyiv.

​Silvio Berlusconi often boasted of his friendship with Putin until Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and created a storm last month when he said Putin had been pushed into the war and wanted to put “decent people” in charge of Kyiv.