Berlusconi's daughter says sex scandals left her 'embittered'

In an interview with Italian edition of 'Vanity Fair' magazine, 26-year-old Barbara Berlusconi said, "I have great admiration for him and his multiple successes but I reserve the right to have an intellectual approach to his life.

"These episodes (the scandals) have left me embittered. I find it hard to find an answer for them. It's obvious that I don't agree with a certain type of behaviour but I have to try to believe my father."

Berlusconi, one of three children from Silvio Berlusconi's second marriage, said that at times she felt she was "not in tune with the thoughts and political actions" of her father but it did not mean she "loved him any less", 'The Daily Telegraph' reported.

The Italian PM has been involved in series of sleazy sex scandals starting with his questionable relationship with Noemi Letizia, an 18-year-old lingerie model. The revelation that he had attended a party in honour of Letizia prompted his then wife Veronica Lario, Barbara's mother, to seek a divorce.

It then emerged that high class escorts had been among guests invited to parties that Berlusconi had hosted at his official residence, with one escort even claiming she was paid to spend the night with him.

The Italian PM and his legal team insist some of the revelations were invented and have denied any wrongdoing.

Barbara added: "What upsets me is that sometimes I don't think Silvio Berlusconi warrants some of the treatment he gets. He has done a lot and done good for the country, with passion and pride. It would be a shame if his extraordinary political career would be remembered only for this."