Rome- Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary-General Mohammed Al-Issa said that while no religion promoted extremism, none was free from extremist elements.

Issa met on Monday with the head of the Pontifical Council of the Vatican, Cardinal Jean-Laurent Tauran, following a meeting earlier this month with Pope Francis.

He noted that the League “welcomes communication and cooperation with the Vatican through the Pontifical Council in all that achieves common goals, in particular, the deployment of peace and harmony.”

Cardinal Tauran, for his part, praised the meeting between Issa and Pope Francis, underlining its importance in opening a new page of friendship and cooperation between the Vatican and the Islamic world, in order to meet the challenges and dangers facing the world.

The MWL secretary general visited the headquarters of the Community of Sant’Egidio, the international Catholic organization based in Rome.

He noted that the MWL was fully ready to cooperate with the organization in all areas that serve cultural communication.

The Saudi Arabian government-supported NGO, MWL, was founded in 1962 to propagate Islam and to improve worldwide understanding of the religion.

Based in the Saudi city of Mecca, the MWL in its mission statement says it rejects violence and fosters “dialogue with people of other cultures.”