Cardinal Bertone, the second in command in the Vatican since his appointment as Secretary of State, released a statement to clarify what the Pope actually said and meant in his speech a few days ago. The Pope's comments were misconstrued by many Muslims and caused a furor in many Islamic countries.
I think we should be more frank about Islam but I understand the Pope's position and desire to dialog. I suspect "ecumenical" efforts with Islam are a waste of time but I guess it is the Christian thing to do. Many Christians in the Middle Ages concluded you don't dialog with radical Islam, you fight it.