Malpensa Airport named after Silvio Berlusconi. Marina: ‘Emotion and pride’
The ceremony honoured the former prime minister as a symbol of dialogue and European vision, with speeches by Tajani, Salvini, La Russa and members of Berlusconi’s family
Milan Malpensa Airport has been named after Silvio Berlusconi. The official ceremony took place in the presence of, amongst others, Senate President La Russa, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Infrastructure Minister Matteo Salvini and the President of the Lombardy Region, Attilio Fontana.
Marina Berlusconi: ‘Proud – the best name for Malpensa’
“The realisation that Milan-Malpensa Silvio Berlusconi Airport will welcome thousands of travellers from all over the world every day fills me with pride. What better name could such a bridge have than ‘Silvio Berlusconi’?” So said Marina Berlusconi, speaking to ANSA on the day the Milan airport was named after the former prime minister, recalling how he was “a man who always sought dialogue with everyone”. “My father spent his life looking ahead and far into the future,” she added. “I like to think that, from today, his name will welcome those arriving from other countries and see off those taking off for new destinations.”
Paolo Berlusconi: ‘Linking Malpensa to Silvio is his fondest memory’
Naming Malpensa Airport after Silvio Berlusconi is the “best tribute” that can be paid to him. This is according to his brother Paolo, who recalls how “Silvio loved Italia and everything he did, he did for the good of what he called ‘my homeland’”. “Silvio is no longer with us,” comments Paolo Berlusconi, “but he lives on in all his urban, political and business achievements.” “Silvio is here today too,” he adds. “‘Our homeland is Italia,’ he used to say, ‘but our future is Europe.’ So what better tribute to Silvio’s memory than to name the gateway to Europe and the world after him?”
Tajani: ‘Naming the street after Berlusconi was a very good choice’
“It is a most fitting choice that Milan Malpensa Airport – a gateway to the world and a point of entry to his city – should be named after him.” This was stated today by the Foreign Secretary, Antonio Tajani, in a video message broadcast during the naming ceremony, in memory of the late founder of Forza Italia. “President Berlusconi was a statesman who shaped the history of our country,” added the Deputy Prime Minister. “He changed the terms and language of political debate. He was one of the best-known Italians in the world. In holding the post of Foreign Minister today – a role for which he himself nominated me at the start of this parliamentary term – and standing here at the United Nations today, I feel I am continuing his work.” “Berlusconi was from Lombardy and embodied the spirit of this region. The void he has left in our hearts and in Italian politics is unbridgeable,” Tajani concluded.
Salvini: ‘Disappointment at those absent; naming the street after Berlusconi is not a party political move’
“We feel a slight sense of regret for those who are absent; today we are commemorating one of the greatest entrepreneurs in Italian political history. This is not a party-political tribute; it is a recognition of reality.” So said the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Infrastructure and Transport and leader of the Lega, Matteo Salvini, during the ceremony.
