Vatican says that Turkish PM’s absence not a problem:

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan might be absent from the country during Benedict XVI’s visit, to attend a NATO summit in Latvia.

Amid media speculation about Erdogan’s absence, the Vatican press office published a statement today to downplay the fact.

In the note, the Holy See revealed that "it had been informed some time ago — while preparing for the trip — of the coincidence with the prime minister’s important commitment on the occasion of the NATO summit."

The Vatican explained, moreover, that it has been informed that "the head of government had tried to be in Turkey to meet with the Holy Father, but could not guarantee it."