Closer dialogue between Vatican and Ecumenical PatriarchateIstanbul (AsiaNews) The Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue should be convened very soon. Vatican delegation visits Fanar neighbourhood on the Feast Day of St Andrew. When representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Vatican delegation headed by Card Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, met yesterday in Istanbul on the Feast Day of St Andrew, they began the discussion on how to reactivate the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue Between the RCatholic Church and the Orthodox Church. They also began talks over the imminent restart of the Commission`s Joint Coordination Committee. The Vatican delegation took part with a group of Catholics to the Divine Liturgy celebrated in the patriarchal church of St George in Fanar, officiated by Patriarch Bartholomew I himself. Notwithstanding the disappointment due to Pope Benedict XVI`s absence, the presence of the Vatican delegation and Catholic faithful showed how the ties between Catholics and Orthodox are getting stronger. The activities to consolidate ecumenical dialogue are however taking place in the midst of an ongoing controversy concerning both the Patriarch and the Pope. Writing about Benedict XVI`s absence, Hurriyet quotes an anonymous European diplomat who reportedly said: "Erdogan often blames the European Union for trying to keep Turkey out because it is a Christian club. But if you look closely, Turkey behaves like a Muslim club".