November 20, 2006 - 15:20 AMT
Pope to Be Met in Turkey by Second-Class Protocol
Pope Benedict XVI's arrival in Turkey November 28 will be met with less ceremony than originally planned. The Pope has insisted on travelling to the Orthodox Patriarchate in the car of Greek Patriarch Batholomeos. Turkey's President Ahmet Necdet Sezer has responded to the decision by assigning a second-class protocol for the welcoming ceremony instead of a first-class protocol. That means there will not be 21 cannon shots fired and fewer soldiers present. The Pope will also stay at the Vatican Embassy rather than in the Glass House in the President's Çankaya Köşk, which is usually set aside for foreign visitors, reports Hurriyet.