ROME, June 12. /TASS/. The Russian Embassy in Italy said it was "shocked by the news of Silvio Berlusconi's death" and praised his contributions to Russian-Italian relations.

"He was a great statesman who left a deep mark on Italian, global, and Russian-Italian relations. He was a visionary, a man of great abilities, and a man with a big heart," the diplomatic mission said in a statement released on Monday.

Earlier on Monday, it was reported that veteran Italian politician Silvio Berlusconi, founder and permanent leader of the Forza Italia (Forward Italy) party, who led the government three times, had died at the age of 87.

In connection with Berlusconi's death, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram to Italian President Sergio Mattarella, expressing "the deepest condolences on the death of the outstanding Italian politician". He considers Berlusconi an outstanding politician, a true patriot of his country who made a great contribution to the development of Russian-Italian cooperation. Berlusconi, according to Putin, "made a truly invaluable personal contribution to the development of mutually beneficial Russian-Italian ties." "In Russia, Silvio Berlusconi will be remembered as a consistent and principled supporter of strengthening friendly relations between our two countries," Putin added.