Italy’s Milan Malpensa Airport to be renamed to include former Premier Silvio Berlusconi

​​​​​​​By Ahmet Gencturk

ATHENS (AA) - The Milan Malpensa Airport in northern Italy will be renamed to include former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, a media report said Thursday.

The renaming of the airport the Milan Malpensa International Airport - Silvio Berlusconi, will take immediate effect, according to state-run ANSA news agency, citing the Transportation Ministry.

Deputy Prime Minister and Transportation Minister Matteo Salvini said July 5 that the airport would be renamed after Berlusconi upon the approval of a request by the Lombardy Region, where Milan is located, from the Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC) board of directors. The move has irked opposition leftist parties.

Berlusconi, who died last June at 87, was a media tycoon and politician who led governments from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006 and 2008 to 2011.​​​​​​​