Pope backs Turkey146;s EU bid

Turkey8217;s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, told reporters after a brief meeting with Benedict at the airport here that he had asked the pope to support Turkey in its attempt to become a member of the European Union.

8220;He said, 8216;We don8217;t have a political role, but we wish for Turkey8217;s entry into the EU.8217; 8221;

Although the Vatican does not play a formal role in the EU, or delve publicly into domestic matters of other states, the Pope8217;s gesture was nonetheless a piece of political stagecraft at a delicate time both in relations between Muslims and the West and in Benedict8217;s own damaged reputation among Muslims.

Before he angered the Muslim world two months ago with a speech criticised as equating Islam with violence, Benedict was disliked here because of comments he made, as a cardinal in 2004, opposing Turkish membership in EU. As successor to the Ottoman Empire, Turkey had always stood, he said at the time, 8220;in permanent contrast to Europe.8221;

8211;IAN FISHER 038; SABRINA TAVERNISE