” “"Unfortunately I must leave. I must go to Riga". Those words were among the first ones spoken by the Turkish Prime Minister, Erdogan, during his meeting with Benedict XVI in a room at Ankara Airport, where the papal flight arrived shortly after 1 pm, local time. Erdogan was the first man to welcome the Pope immediately after his descending the plane’s boarding ramp. During the conversation, the Turkish prime minister reminded Benedict XVI of the initiative "Alliance of civilizations", promoted together with the Spanish Prime Minister, Zapatero, and with the agreement of the leaving Secretary of the United Nations, Kofi Annan. "Your visit, said Erdogan to the Pope, coincides with a really special time, a period of controversy between civilizations. It is exactly for this reason that the visit is particularly important". As for Benedict XVI, he expressed "sentiments of joy for being in Turkey". ” “
