ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, on a charm offensive after making remarks that angered the Muslim world, hailed Islam Tuesday as a great religion that has played a significant role in civilization.Berlusconi sparked international outrage last week after saying that Western values were superior to those of Islam. He has refused to retract the comments and insisted that his words were distorted by leftist foes.
Bidding to deflate the widespread anger, Berlusconi invited six senior Muslim diplomats for talks Tuesday in which he heaped praise on their faith. (Read photo caption below)
``The prime minister took the opportunity to recall his deep respect for Islam, a great religion, with more than one billion followers which preaches tolerance, the respect of human rights (and) the peaceful cohabitation between peoples,'' his office said in a statement following the three-hour meeting.
Berlusconi, who heads a center-right administration and controls one of Europe's largest media empires, gave the diplomats a transcript of his controversial remarks at a news conference in Germany.
``It was a cordial and friendly meeting. We are satisfied with the outcome,'' said Nemir Hammad, the Palestinian ambassador in Italy, who attended the talks.
The prime minister's statement said it was crucial to differentiate between terrorism and Islam, and added that Italy would continue to be a firm friend of Arab and Muslim nations.
Tuesday he told the diplomats from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, Pakistan, Senegal, Tunisia and the Palestinian territories that he had not attacked Islam and that opinions had been ``wrongly attributed'' to him.
PHOTO CAPTION:
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi (R) gestures as he welcomes Saudi Arabian ambassador Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abulaziz Al Saud at Chigi palace October 2, 2001. Italian Berlusconi, on a charm offensive after making remarks that angered the Muslim world, hailed Islam as a great religion that has played a significant role in civilization. (Vincenzo Pinto/Reuters)