Last updated at 1.40pm with Putin tribute.

Silvio Berlusconi, the former prime minister who reshaped Italy's political and cultural landscape while fending off multiple legal and sex scandals, has died aged 86, his spokesman confirmed to AFP Monday.

The billionaire media mogul was admitted to a Milan hospital on Friday for what aides said were pre-planned tests related to his leukaemia.

His admission came just three weeks after he was discharged following a six-week stay at Milan's San Raffaele hospital, during which time doctors revealed he had a rare type of blood cancer.

Berlusconi had suffered ill health for years, from heart surgery in 2016 to a 2020 hospitalisation for coronavirus. Despite being re-elected to the Senate last year, he was rarely seen in public.

But he remained the official head of his right-wing Forza Italia party, a junior -- and occasionally troublesome -- partner in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's coalition government.

Berlusconi led Italy three times between 1994 and 2011, for a total of nine years, wooing voters with a promise of economic success only to be forced out as a debt crisis gripped his country.

Italian Prime Minister and President of the European Council Silvio Berlusconi welcomes Malta's Prime Minister Eddie Fenech Adami (R) at the start of the European Council and Intergovernmental Conference in Brussels 16 October 2003. (AFP)

But his influence extended well beyond politics, thanks to his extensive TV, newspaper and sporting interests, while his playboy antics kept him in the headlines even in his final years.

"Silvio Berlusconi made history in this country," ex-prime minister Matteo Renzi said on Facebook.

"Many loved him, many hated him: everyone today must recognize that his impact on political but also economic, sporting and television life was unprecedented," he said.

Berlusconi is survived by his 33-year-old girlfriend, Marta Fascina, two ex-wives and five children, some of whom help run his empire, recently estimated to be worth some seven billion dollars. 

Berlusconi built a Pharaoh-inspired marble mausoleum at his villa in Arcore, near Milan, to house his family and friends when they die.

Italian Prime minister Silvio Berlusconi (R) shakes hands with Prime Minister of Malta Lawrence Gonzi at Palazzo Chigi in Rome on July 24, 2008. (AFP)

Charismatic, clownish and with a fine grasp of what his audiences wanted, Berlusconi used his media interests to project an image of a strong, self-made man that voters could emulate -- a tactic later used by US president Donald Trump.

Berlusconi began his career as a real-estate magnate before investing in television channels which broke the mould in Italy, featuring shows particularly popular with housewives, later a pillar of his electorate.

He portrayed himself as both the messiah and a martyr and enjoyed widespread popularity, though detractors accused him of cronyism, corruption and pushing through laws to protect his own interests.

His fans admired his plain speaking, although many Italians were acutely embarrassed by his crude jokes and insults on the international stage, as well as his endless legal cases, which resulted in one conviction for corporate tax fraud.

While Italy's economy floundered, the self-professed playboy was hosting his notorious "bunga bunga" sex parties, which triggered a series of trials that were only wrapped up in recent months.

In 2010, 17-year-old Karima El-Mahroug, known as "Ruby the Heart Stealer", claimed to have been paid by Berlusconi for sex. He was later also accused of bribing witnesses to lie about the parties, although he was ultimately acquitted.

Putin pays tribute to 'true friend' Berlusconi 

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the death of Silvio Berlusconi was an "irreparable loss" and hailed him as a "true friend."

"For me Silvio was a cherished person and a true friend," Putin said in a telegram to the Italian president released by the Kremlin. "His passing is an irreparable loss and a great sorrow." 

PN condolences

The Nationalist Party expressed its condolences over Berlusconi's death, saying he was a friend of Malta who had always tried to improve bilateral relations.

It recalled that Berlusconi had led Italy in the years of major political change and had backed Malta's quest to join the European Union and supported the country as a member state.