Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has described the publication of photos of topless women sunbathing at his villa as an invasion of privacy.
His lawyer said Mr Berlusconi will take legal action.
Spain's El Pais published five photos in an article titled 'The pictures vetoed by Berlusconi' .
Two photos showed Mr Berlusconi walking within the villa grounds accompanied by women whose faces are blurred, while another showed a women sunbathing topless.
Mr Berlusconi's lawyer, Niccolo Ghedini, said he was filing a legal complaint against the newspaper.
'These pictures ... were seized in Italy because it was reckoned that they were derived from illegal behaviour,' Mr Ghedini said in a statement.
'Anybody buying them anywhere in the world commits a crime.'
Mr Berlusconi's private life has become an issue ahead of European elections.
He is the subject an investigation into the use of state planes to ferry guests to his luxury villa on the Mediterranean island of Sardinia.
El Pais wrote in an editorial: 'The publication of the photos of his private parties is not an attempt to judge his morality as a citizen, but to demonstrate that as prime minister he is trying to transform the democratic arena into a simple extension of his friendships and entertainments.
'An Italy sliding down the slope which Berlusconi is dragging it down is not only a source of concern for Italians, but for all Europeans.'
Another photo in the newspaper shows a naked man by the poolside.
'Do you take a shower in a jacket and tie?' Mr Berlusconi asked a radio interviewer when questioned about the photos.
'These are people bathing in a Jacuzzi inside a private house meant for guests.'
The photos were taken by photographer Antonello Zappadu, whose pictures an Italian prosecutor has allowed Mr Berlusconi to seize on privacy grounds because they were taken without permission from outside the villa using a powerful lens.
'These are innocent photos, there's no scandal but this is a violation of privacy and a scandalous aggression,' Mr Berlusconi told local radio.
