Pope Francis stressed the importance of dialogue between leaders of different religions during his landmark visit to the Turkish capital on Friday.

The pontiff made the remarks during a press conference held jointly with the head of Turkey's Presidency of Religious Affairs, Mehmet Görmez. "Dialogue between leaders of different religions is extremely important since it gives a clear message to all related communities and shows that mutual respect and friendship are possible despite differences," Pope Francis said.

He also touched upon the worrisome situation in the Middle East and extremism: "People are totally exposed to barbaric violence simply because of their religious and ethnic identity. … Extremism that uses religion as a reference should not be allowed. Dialogue between leaders of different religions is extremely important as it gives a clear message to all related communities and shows that mutual respect and friendship are possible despite differences."