MILAN, June 12 (Reuters) - Silvio Berlusconi, the billionaire media mogul and former Italian prime minister who transformed the nation's politics with polarising policies and often alarmed his allies with his brazen remarks, died on Monday aged 86.
Berlusconi, Italy's longest-serving premier who counted Russian President Vladimir Putin as a friend and gained notoriety for his "bunga bunga" sex parties, had suffered from leukaemia and recently developed a lung infection.
Berlusconi's Forza Italia party is part of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's right-wing coalition, and although he himself did not have a role in government, his death is likely to destabilise Italian politics in the coming months.
Farewell Silvio," Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said.
After building a television empire in the 1980s, Berlusconi threw himself into politics in 1994 and almost immediately became prime minister.
Persons:
Silvio Berlusconi, Berlusconi, Italy's, Vladimir Putin, Paolo, ANSA, Giorgia Meloni's, Marina, Silvio, Giorgia Meloni, Enrico Letta, Putin, Emilio Parodi, Elvira Pollina, Alvise Armellini, Edmund Blair
Organizations:
MILAN, Berlusconi's Forza Italia, Twitter, Milan bourse, Forza Italia, Monza, Serie, Thomson
Locations:
San Raffaele, Milan, Italy, Italian, Ukraine, Moscow, Kyiv