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ANKARA - Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Namik Tan on Wednesday reaffirmed that Turkey does not recognize and accept ecumenism.
When asked of his comments on remarks of Pope Benedict XVI who called Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew "ecumenic patriarch", Tan said, "you have already known our stance towards the matter."
Tan underscored that the Patriarchate is a Turkish institution, indicating that, "any other definition beyond this does not bind us. We have explained to the whole world that we don't recognize and accept ecumenism."
Asked whether the uneasiness felt over it was expressed to the Vatican, Tan said, "everybody has the information related to this. Nobody should have concerns over it."
Replying to another question, Tan said the news reports which claimed that the Vatican refuted the advocation of the pope to Turkey's EU membership during the visit should not be "esteemed".