EU Commission disowns Berlusconi's views

The European Commission yesterday disowned Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's view on Russia's handling of the Yukos oil giant and its behaviour in Chechnya, a day after he voiced glowing support for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In a rare rebuke to the country holding the European Union's rotating presidency, chief Commission spokesman Reijo Kemppinen told a news conference: "We do not share the view of Prime Minister Berlusconi when it comes to the situation of Yukos, nor when it comes to the present... or past situation in Chechnya."

He said Commission President Romano Prodi had told Putin at Thursday's EU-Russia summit in Rome the arrest of former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky and the impounding of a stake in the private energy company raised concerns about the security of foreign investments in Russia.

"Insofar as the remarks of Prime Minister Berlusconi yesterday on these two affairs (are concerned), I would define them as personal remarks," Kemppinen said.

Berlusconi's spokesman in Rome shot back, criticising Prodi and Kemppinen for only expressing their views after both the summit and the subsequent news conference were over.