Silvio Berlusconi met Russian President Dmitry Medvedev yesterday under a cloud of revelations that Washington was growing increasingly anxious about the Italian Prime Minister’s ties to Moscow.

The leaked US cable disclosures forced both leaders to address poignant assessments of a relationship that Washington believes has worked to the detriment of both the European Union and the United States.

Mr Medvedev said cables quoting sources who felt he played “Robin to (Prime Minister Vladimir) Putin’s Batman” showed the “cynicism” of Washington’s thinking.

“We are not paranoid. We do not tie Russia-US relations to any leaks. But at the same time, these are indicative,” Mr Medvedev said in televised remarks.

“They show the entire extent of the cynicism of these evaluations, these judgments, that prevail in the various governments’ foreign policies – and in this case I am talking about the United States.”

Mr Berlusconi brushed off uncomfortable allegations about his ties to “his fellow ‘tycoon’” Mr Putin as meaningless notes written by unqualified bureaucrats.

“They take the first thing they see on the front page of a newspaper and transform it into a super-important-looking diplomatic cable,” Mr Berlusconi said through a Russian translator.

Yet, it was Mr Berlusconi’s relations with Mr Putin that appeared to excite Washington’s interest most.

Mr Berlusconi was described as acting as Mr Putin’s “mouthpiece” and “profiting personally and handsomely” in exchange.

“The basis of the friendship is hard to determine, but many interlocutors have told us that Mr Berlusconi believes that Mr Putin, ‘a fellow tycoon,’ trusts Mr Berlusconi more than any other leader,” the US embassy in Rome wrote.

US officials said this bond has proven beneficial to Italy in trade terms and useful to Mr Berlusconi personally as he establishes himself as a force to be reckoned with by Washington and an important interlocutor for the EU.