THE SMIRK shared by Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy when quizzed about Silvio Berlusconi at their Brussels press conference on Sunday made headlines in Italy prompting even some of the Italian prime minister’s fiercest enemies to close ranks behind him.
Leading daily Corriere della Sera, which has criticised Mr Berlusconi for delaying the economic stimulus package demanded by Europe, called the behaviour of Dr Merkel and Mr Sarkozy "excessive" in a front-page editorial, adding: "For an Italian it was not great, and it matters little if you are pro- or anti-Berlusconi."
The French and German leaders exchanged glances and smiled when asked if they were confident Mr Berlusconi would come up with reforms, prompting a gale of laughter from journalists.
“No one is authorised to ridicule Italy, even after Berlusconi’s obvious and embarrassing delays in tackling the crisis,” said Pier Ferdinando Casini, the head of the opposition UDC party, adding: “I didn’t like Sarkozy’s sarcastic smile.”
More predictably, Il Giornale, owned by the Berlusconi family, did not split hairs, likening Mr Sarkozy's smile to the headbutt on Italian footballer Marco Matterazzi by France's Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 World Cup final.
La Repubblicasummed up the general discomfort at seeing Italy put on par with Greece at the Brussels summit, held to thrash out a solution for the European debt crisis, calling any parallels with Italy's neighbour "ungenerous". – (Guardian service)