Italy’a day-old presidency of the European Union (EU) was immediately clouded by fierce bickering between Government and Opposition camps on Tuesday. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi hopes his six-month term at the European tiller will boost his international prestige and wipe away lingering doubts about his commitment to EU ideals. But the presidency got off to a rocky start, with an array of leading European newspapers questioning the billionaire businessman’s moral credentials to represent the 15-nation bloc.Faced by an unprecedented barrage of foreign media criticism, Opposition parties had suggested they might rally around the Prime Minister to help safeguard Italy’s image.But any notion of a truce broke down hours before the presidency officially began when Berlusconi used an interview with a French radio station to denounce the Italian judiciary and to accuse the Left of inciting media hostility.‘‘This is a terrible beginning,’’ said former Left-wing Prime minister Massimo D’Alema. ‘‘To export our internal rows in such a crude fashion will not win back credibility for our country.’’Berlusconi’s supporters said the Prime minister was simply telling the truth and accused the Left of orchestrating a European-wide smear campaign against the government.‘‘We must all make an effort not to export controversies that are decidedly provincial,’’ Senate President Marcello Pera, who is a member of Berlusconi’s Forza Italia (Go Italy) party, was quoted as saying by Italian newspapers on Tuesday. Some EU diplomats have also complained that Berlusconi has fostered close relations with the US and Russia at the expense of Italy’s traditionally strong European ties. —Reuters
