Istanbul, Turkey - The spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians cautioned Turks in an interview published Sunday against creating potential "unpleasant incidents" during Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming trip to Turkey.
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I said in an interview published in the Sabah newspaper Sunday that the pope's Nov. 28 to Dec. 1 trip was a great opportunity for Turkey, and he would tell the pontiff that the country belonged in the European Union, which Ankara has long sought to join.
The pope's visit to Turkey was born out of Benedict's desire to meet Bartholomew, who has his headquarters in Istanbul, once ancient Constantinople. The pontiff has been trying to foster better relations between the Orthodox and Catholics, and will meet privately with Bartholomew on Nov. 29.
Authorities in Turkey - a Muslim country - have said they expect protests against the pope, who angered Muslims by a speech he made in September in which he quoted a Byzantine emperor's remarks about Islam and violence.
Benedict has since expressed regret that the remarks caused offense and has stressed they did not reflect his personal opinion. He has also expressed esteem for Islam.
Bartholomew cautioned that if protests turn violent, they could cause problems for Turkey ahead of a critical EU summit in mid-December, where the EU leaders will judge Ankara's progress for membership.
"The pope has a say in all Catholic countries," Bartholomew told Sabah. "If there are psychologically unpleasant incidents, then this would be an issue in Brussels in December. Even if not at the official level, they would talk about it between themselves."
Bartholomew, however, said he would tell the pontiff that "it is not wrong for Turkey to become a member of the EU as a Muslim country because it would bring mutual richness."
"The EU should not remain as a Christian club," daily Sabah quoted Bartholomew as saying.
During his trip, Benedict will also meet with Turkey's president and the deputy premier, as well as the head of the country's religious affairs, a top Islamic cleric.