Pope Benedict XVI has invited the ambassadors of Muslim countries and Muslim religious leaders to talks at the Vatican.
The meeting is to take place at the papal summer residence, Castelgandolfo, next Monday.
The Vatican said it would call such a meeting as part of diplomatic efforts to explain to offended Muslims that a speech in Germany last week seen as portraying Islam as violent had been misunderstood.
A Vatican spokesperson said the initiative was an effort to 'relaunch dialogue with the Islamic world'.
Pope Benedict has expressed regret over the past week following a speech in which he quoted a 14th century Byzantine Emperor who criticised some teachings of the Prophet Mohammed as 'evil and inhuman'.
But he has stopped short of the unequivocal apology for the speech at a university in his native Germany.
At an audience on Wednesday, the Pope said his real intention had been to 'explain that religion and violence do not go together but religion and reason do'.
Italy and the Vatican's own security service have since tightened security around the Pope because of the sometimes violent reaction to his speech around the world.
