Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was “a good friend” of Malta and had “a special love for Mdina”,  according to former Maltese politicians who met him along the years.

“His relationship with Malta was a good and strong one,” said former Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, who met with Berlusconi on numerous occasions. 

The 86-year-old Italian billionaire media mogul died on Monday. He was battling a lung infection and leukaemia.

Former Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Foreign Affairs Minister with Silvio Berlusconi in Italy in 2008.

“We sat together around the European Council table dealing with issues that were of a European dimension and of major interest for Italy and Malta. We shared the same vision of what should be happening in the Mediterranean, especially during those moments in time when there was one crisis after another – such as the [2011] Arab Spring and the Libya uprising – and when there was need for us to work together,” Gonzi said adding that migration was a dominant issue.

Gonzi said there were occasions when they disagreed “but in all instances, with no exceptions, Berlusconi agreed on compromised solutions that were in the best interest of Malta.”

Former Foreign Minister Tonio Borg had similar views.

“He was a controversial figure for a number of reasons but, as regards to Malta, he loved Malta. Each time we requested some help, he always said yes. He always used to seek a solution. Even after we joined the EU, Italy continued to help Malta financially,” he said.

Italy supported Malta through various financial protocols that spanned across several administrations and included funding that helped build roads and contributed to the setting up of the Civil Protection Department and the Freeport, amongst other things.

Gonzi and Borg agreed that Berlusconi left a strong mark on Italian politics, where he shared the centre-right views of the Nationalist Party in Malta.

“He left his mark on Italy's political landscape. His ambition was to see Italy become as successful as his business empire," Gonzi said, adding that at a personal level he was always joking and with a smile on his face.

What Berlusconi asked Mary Fenech Adami

The funny, and somewhat controversial side of Berlusconi, was shared in the autobiography of former Prime Minister and President Eddie Fenech Adami.

During the launch of the book Eddie: My Journey, Fenech Adami had recounted a meeting with the former Italian Prime Minister.

"Berlusconi turned to my wife Mary and asked her: 'Tell me, how does your husband make love to you?'" Fenech Adami said.

Former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi was in Malta in 2017 for an EPP Congress where he met current EPP Secretary General Simon Busuttil.

And talking about love, Gonzi and Borg said Berlusconi loved Mdina. “For him it represented a jewel” said Gonzi as Borg recalled that Berlusconi once considered buying a house there.

Berlusconi visited Malta on several occasions, one of the most recent being the 2017 congress of the European People’s Party.

The Secretary General of the EPP Group Simon Busuttil, who was PN leader back then said: “I am saddened by the news of the loss of Silvio Berlusconi, who was a good friend of Malta and of the PN. Despite his colourful personality, Berlusconi always drew a moderate line in politics and never strayed from his pro-European commitment. Whether in politics or in media, he has left his mark on Italy and beyond and will be forever remembered. May he rest in peace.”

Disagreement over migration

But despite his good relations with Malta, Berlusconi was irked that migrants headed for Italy and were not disembarked here. In February 2018 he criticised an agreement made by Italy's then centre-left government, through which, he said, Italy accepted to take all migrants saved in the Mediterranean.

“There is no doubt that migrants who risk their life and cross the Mediterranean have to be saved. However, we will not accept that all disembark in Italy. Those saved close to Malta will have to be taken to and disembark in Malta,” the former Italian prime minister and leader of Forza Italia said on Rai Tre during an interview.

In February 2019 he urged the Italian government to emulate Malta’s success in the tourism industry in Sardinia, arguing that Malta was outperforming the Italian island despite being much smaller and "incomparable with Sardinia for the beauty of the environment and for gastronomy".