Rome:  The WikiLeaks cables have caused Silvio Berlusconi major embarrassment, with juicy gossip about hard partying and too-cozy ties to Russia. But the Italian premier has bigger problems on his hands than diplomatic indiscretions: In upcoming days he'll be fighting for his very political survival.

The 74-year-old leader faces a no-confidence vote next week that will determine the fate of his government. Just weeks ago, it appeared Berlusconi had little chance of winning after his biggest ally withdrew his backing — effectively depriving him of the votes he would need to survive Tuesday's challenge.

But the wily billionaire media tycoon, who has shaken off countless crises in the past, has battled back, gaining support as he argues instability would hurt Italy at a time of economic crisis. The comeback includes ingredients of typical Berlusconi-style political drama: backroom deals, mudslinging, vote-buying rumours.

Hunt for a compromise

The vote's outcome is now so uncertain and its consequences so unpredictable that frantic last-minute meetings have been taking place to find a possible compromise. Any outcome will be determined by a handful of lawmakers.

"Nobody can be certain how a razor-edge vote will turn out," said Stefano Folli, a leading Italian analyst.

The showdown was set up when conservative friend-turned-foe Gianfranco Fini split with Berlusconi, withdrawing from the government and urging the premier to resign. Since then, the Berlusconi camp has been on an all-out campaign to woo lawmakers of all stripes. Recently, aides have courted the fringe Radical Party, whose six lawmakers could prove critical to no-confidence vote in Parliament's lower house.

Fini commands 36 deputies in the 630-member house, and has forged an alliance that includes small groups for a front including 80 lawmakers. If that grouping remains united in its vow to bring Berlusconi down he'll lose.

But already there are signs of trouble in the Fini camp — and Berlusconi, insists he'll muster the necessary 316 votes.

In his call for political stability, Berlusconi points to renewed danger that Italy might become engulfed in Europe's debt crisis. But some lawmakers might have more than the country's good in mind. News reports say scores of deputies have not been on the job long enough to have earned a right to parliament's generous pension, and therefore have an interest in keeping the status quo.

An undecided lawmaker, Massimo Calearo, said in an interview this month that he'd been offered up to half a million euros (Dh2.4 million) to vote in favour of Berlusconi. The premier and his aides have denied seeking to buy votes.

The premier's courtship of undecided lawmakers may be succeeding: The anti-Berlusconi front showed strains Thursday, with at least two lawmakers signalling a change of heart.