anchor: this is dw news alive from berlin. tonight, the leaders of russia and germany and their frosty reunion. germany's chancellor on july rk a meets russia's president vladimir putin in their first face-to-face in two years. on the agenda, ukraine, syria, and reports that chechnya is murdering gay we will have the latest. alsom,en. north korea accuses washington of putting the region to the brink of nuclear war as two u.s. bombers fly over the korean peninsula. and, has germany's army been in

-- infiltrated by right-wing terrorists? it is so serious, the defense minister has canceled a trip to the u.s., her generals are busy blaming each other. it is good to have you with us, it was a not so easy hello again. at german chancellor angela merkel held talks with russian president vladimir putin in the black sea resort, the first one-on-one between the leaders in two years. it comes at a low point in german russian relations. during a frosty press conference it was crystal clear that the issues defining -- dividing the two have not disappeared. >> it was a warm spring day as angela merkel met president putin. but inside, the tone was cold.

they described the talks as detailed but did not go so far as to say they were constructed. the two leaders appeared to make little progress on the conflicts in ukraine and syria. at a joint news conference, merkel pressed putin over civil liberties and the rights of minorities. >> i made it clear how important the right to protest is in a civil society, and how important it is. i talked about the very negative reports we have received about the treatments of homosexuals in chechnya. i asked president putin to use his influence their and also, when it comes to the treatment of minorities, like jehovah's witnesses. that prompted a sharp response. >> i said this to the

chancellor, and i want to say it to you, too. security forces in russia are much more restrained and liberal than some of those in europe. where your gas is used to break up demonstrations. thankfully, we have not had to do that. our officials work within the law, as they ensure law and order. reporter: more attention after a reporter referred to allegations russia meddled in the u.s. election and could be planning to do so again in germany's upcoming vote. putin dismissed the accusations as baseless rumor. but merkel said it germany would deal firmly with any cases of misinformation. >> we know that cyber crime is

well-known hybrid warfare plays a role in russia's military doctrine. as i said, i am confident our election campaign in germany will not be compromised. the two leaders about to keep talking. but their frosty encounter confirmed that a divide remained. brent: we have coverage from sochi. reporter: angela merkel mentioned the most unpleasant issue with president putin, the violation of human rights in russia. a very dangerous situation for gay men in the russian republic of chechnya. he accused european police of being more aggressive than russia. there is no hope that merkel's words had been heard and understood by the russian president. as for the ukrainian conflict,

putin accused the government of -- admitted to know one mistake on the russian side. we hope both leaders can find a common ground fighting international terrorism, which is good, of course, but not enough. nevertheless, these talks were important for both sides because face-to-face dialogue, or an attempt to understand each other , is important to break down barriers. that is particularly true of russia, which oyster complains about not being heard and respected on the world's stage. brent: that was our report from sochi. after his meeting with angela merkel, president putin called the u.s. president, donald trump. the two discussed the syrian crisis and agreed to schedule a meeting at the g20 in july to be held in the german city of hamburg.

the european court of human rights has found russian authorities guilty of being complicit in the torture and maltreatment of police detainees. a court in strasburg ordered russian authorities to pay 100,000 euros compensation to three men. the defendant said that while in custody, police said beaten them , half suffocated them, and left them tied up to force them to coess. of their claims were backed up by medical evidence. the court said russian authorities failed to investigate these allegations. moscow has three months to appeal. tonight, north korea is accusing the united states of pushing the korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war. that is after two u.s. bombers were deployed over the area in a training exercise with south korea. tensions have been mounting over north korea's pursuit of nuclear weons and ballistic missiles in defiance of you when sanctions. the white house's reaction to john yang's rhetoric has been

mixed. reporter: the supersonic bomber is capable of flying intercontinental missions without refueling, penetrating sophisticated enemy defenses. yesterday, two of these jets went over the korean peninsula in a training drill with south korean and japanese air forces. the deployment of the bombers, they decided to counter the missile launch by north korea. south korean officials say it is on standby. >> i confirmed they have early -- using equipment that is currently installed. in the midst of the increase of deployment, u.s. president donald trump said he would be honored to meet with kim jong-un. the white house quickly brought up the prospect of that meeting taking place anytime soon. >> the key part of the

president's statement was, under the right circumstances. and those circumstances do not exist now. it is consistent with what secretary tillerson said the other day. if north korea continues to have a degree of provocative behavior, though circumstances will never be there. reporter: north korea has vowed to accelerate its nuclear weapons program, threatening a nuclear test at any time. brent: what does it mean to be german? in this election year, that can be an explosive question. germany's interior minister calls an uproar with his claims of a so-called leitkultur, or dominant culture in his country. he wrote an article saying migrants to germany should it here to 10 rules. those include shaking hands, rejecting a burqa, which would go against the muslims living here in germany. reporter: the handshake is a

social custom that angela merkel sticks to number matter where she is or who she is meeting. the not everybody is happy to shake hands. some muslim men refused to shake a woman's hand, even in germany. the handshake is one of the 10 rules outlined by germany's conservative interior minister in a newspaper article that he revived a decades-old debate on assimilation. for example, we show our faces, we do not wear burqas, we value our customs, we say our name and offer a handshake. what unites germans? the idea that a burqa is not a part of german culture is shared if it is complete, yes, it is a problem. because you cannot see the eyes or face. >> depends on the context, culture, country. but here i would not expect it. reporter: didn't interior

minister has support within his party. >> not everything in our constitution is taken for granted by everyone who comes here. that applies to equality between men and women. that is viewed differently in other countries and legal systems. many regard the debate as completely superfluous, arguing the german constitution already enshrines the country's values. the deputy chair says it is just a campaign tactic ahead of federal elections this fall. >> our common values are defined by our constitution; the quality, freedom of opinion, press. we want to be open and tolerant. apart from that, there is diversity. we do not need a conservative party telling other people how to live. but with federal elections just months away, the debate about what constitutes an open and tolerant society in germany is certain to keep rumbling.

brent: there are lots of opinions that go along with that question. to talk about that i am joined by a journalist, the editor of a feminist magazine. it is good to have you here on the show. what do you think when you hear what the country's interior minister has said? that there is a 10 point list of things that define a germanness? >> i have a lot of thoughts. the first thought i have is, why would one want to be german? it is not like germany is so glamorous you would want to fit into it. brent: germany and all the studies has been the most popular country in the world for the last two to three years. it is a popular place to be. >> apparently. maybe not for people who grow appeared to -- grow up here. brent: how would you define a

germanness, based on your experience? >> germanness is very hard to describe without being mean. brent: you can be mean, we're all friends here. what do you thk it means? >> one of the first associations i have with germanness is passive aggressiveness, racism, faking to be tolerant while discriminating on multiple levels. also not a technology there are different discrimination structures, such as sexism. brent: give me an example of that discrimination you see in your life, living in germany. >> living in germany, i see a

lot of germans blaming the patriarchy and sexism, harassment, and violence against women on a lot of middle eastern or muslim cultures, even though germany is inherently sexist as a country. every time we have a debate about sexism, it is very basic and people want to discuss whether or not we even have a sexism problem, which we obviously do. brent: what would you advise the interior minister -- what should he do, the first step to ensuring everyone living here live together peacefully and is able to appreciate each other, even if you are different? >> maybe make sure that we try to integrate into germany, it is

a promising thing for people, it is attractive to people because right now, it is not. also, if you want to integrate people, maybe learn the difference between a burqa, because hardly anyone wears them in germany. they are super rare. brent: what about the role of religion? >> by bashing women who wear burqas, i do not see anybody respecting religions. brent: is religion important, is at the glue of a society, the way the interior minister has described it? >> definitely not. it should be the freedom of choosing a religion or not to choose any religion. there is no separation between religion and state in germany. we do not work on sundays, the holidays are all christian. brent: i have been told we are running out of time, we could

talk a lot longer about this. thank you very much, we appreciate you being on the show. we are going to take a short break. when we come back, more news and business headlines. ♪ brent: welcome back, here with

dw news live from berlin. leaders of germany and russia held talks in sochi. angela merkel and vladimir putin agreed much more needs to be done to end the syrian conflict. chancellor merkel urged putin to ensure the rights of the persecuted gay community in chechnya. germany's defense minister has canceled a trip to the u.s. for a terror investigation into her countries armed forces. the defense minister, ursula von

der leyen, is facing a crisis after the arrest of a soldier accused of planning a right-wing terror attack. it has put the spotlight on right-wing extremism within the army's ranks. she has angered the army's top brass by blaming their leadership area >> -- leadership. reporter: her comments and true push back from the german military association. they say yes, there are problems , but her comments are misguided. >> the bundeswehr is not in good shape. they have problems with equipment and staffing. yet, german troops are doing everything humanly possible. then a minister comes along and says there is a behavior issue. reporter: von der leyen says there are broader troubles within the military. >> we have seen pictures by the investigation team that showed

graffiti and military emblems of nazi germany. it shows that the principles that work well in the german army have failed. reporter: members of germans left party applauded the minister for pointing up the problems, but also put the blame on her. >> she has been the defense minister for over three years, so she is also responsible for the bad state of the army. it is evidence that we are not dealing with an isolated case here, but rather, a structural problem. reporter: suspicions about a right-wing network within germany's military are the minister's bigger problem. should they prove to be founded, she could face additional pressure. >> if a lieutenant had been known to hold right-wing views ancoulstill be serving. von der leyen has canceled a

u.s. trip to focus on the investigation. this week she is set to discuss with army leaders how to prevent future episodes of violence or extremism among troop. -- troops. brent: an attack in northeastern syria, dozens have been wounded and killed. an assault took place after they snuck into a village knew the border with iraq. some militants blew themselves up at a kurdish checkpoint. somewhere at a refugee camp -- some were at a refugee camp. americans are not showing love to their cars like they used to. >> that happens sometimes, love is not what it used to be. u.s. car sales skidded to a screeching halt in april. it was the fourth straight month of decline for the industry after seven years of growth.

all three big amrican automakers reported a drop in sales last month compared april last year. gm, the biggest u.s. automaker, saw sales drop nearly 6% before failed -- sales fell over 7%. fiat chrysler also lost 7%. the only one to reported increase, a 1% increase over sales that were depressed a year ago by the diesel emissions cheating scandal. let's take a look at this with our new york correspondent. good to see you. we see bad news from the car sector. is this the start of a paradigm change their -- there? reporter: long economic bright spots like car sales have begun to fade. economists say these do not match the hopes and that's on growth under president donald

trump. that was the main cause for the postelection stock rally we saw in recent weeks. automakers signaled that it is a hot streak rapidly cooling down, reporting street -- steep declines. automakers continue to rely on discounts to maintain demand. inntory increases. dealers now need 50 days to turn a vehicle. the highest level since 2009. brent: not all bad news. tesla is at an all-time high read what is driving that -- high right now. what is driving that? >> the cheapest tesla is starting in july, ramping up to 10,000 vehicles weekly.

tesla is one of the makers doing it the right way. their market valuation climbed and surpassed market value for the first time. they are moving close to g.m., showing investor optimism in its future. the prospects for the traditional carmakers from detroit -- while they may have strong profits in a healthy balance sheet, tesla offers the potential for dramatic growth in the future. brent: we will see if that happens, thank you so much from new york for the analysis. a german chemical company opens a new plant in the canadian province of saskatchewan today. the 3 billion euro project will be a rival to another cpany, the biggest exporter of fertilizer. the project is not without risk.

the market is over supplied and kns is auming theyill recover from theurre low level. italian airline alitalia managed to secure a bridge loan to stave off immediate collapse. they say they are seeking a new buyer and flights will continue as normal for now. in the interim, a government decision will be taken on either salvaging or ceasing operations altogether. there currently is one million euros a day. the bailout plan was recently denied, causing investors to deny any further cash projections. turkish president erdogan has rejoined a party after weaning a referendum with sweeping presidential powers. they must previously -- speaking to the akp, he has plans to

boost economic growth. he wants to lower inflation by bringing down interest rates, blaming high rates for pushing up prices. erdogan is trying to drum up trade outside the e.u. as political uncertainty scares off investors, heavily affecting the economy. reporter: turkey's economy is not in good decision -- condition. tourists are staying away, doing -- due to terrorist attacks. investors are skeptical because of the current political and economic situation. that at a ceremony to mark his return to the party, erdogan promised to change all that. he especially wants to lower the inflation rate, which reached 11% in march. that was the highest in over eight years. >> we will boost production and exports. we have been boosting, and we will keep boosting employment.

god willing, we will lower inflation further. in the meantime, we will certainly bring down interest rates. reporter: erdogan has previously declared himself an enemy of interest rates. that comment exerted pressure on the lira. brent: that was the business update. now we have an update on other world news. >> here the other stories making headlines around the world. administrators have blocked the streets and clashed with police in venezuela in her nude protests against president maduro. he signed a decree for a new, 500 number constituent assembly with the ability to rewrite the constitution. the opposition say it is a ploy to delay elections. the czech republic's prime minister has announced his government will resign. the surprise move comes amid a row with one of its coalition

partners, one of the country's richest businessman. just month ahead of an election. he denied any wrongdoing. poland topped off a long weekend with a spectacular light show in the capital of warsaw. locals and tourists gathered to watch fireworks in a laser light display. laser beams conjured up images from myths and legends about warsaw, including a dragon turning people into stone. ♪ brent: here is a reminder of the top stories we are following. the leaders of germany and russia held talks in sochi. merkel and putin agreed more must be done to end the syrian conflict, where russia supports

the government of bashar al-assad. she wants him to ensure the rights of the prosecuted -- persecuted gay community in chechnya. a scandal threatening to envelop the german armed forces. ursula von der leyen involved in a row with top officers after the arrest of a soldier accused of plotting a far right terror attack. after short break i will be back to take you through the day. reyes: chile is one of the most seismic countries in the world,

and it's now better equipped to handle future quakes. i'm elaine reyes in washington, dc, and this is "americas now." [siren] first up, an earthquake-prone country's looking for ways to decrease devastation. after several hard-hitting quakes, chile is now investing millions of dollars in terrain research, anti-shock building methods, and earthquake preparedness. [man speaking spanish] translator: with every earthquake, there are lessons to be learned from all sides, especially from the areas most affected. reyes: correspondent harris whitbeck went to chile to learn the measures taken by the country and how it is sharing new findings with others.