president obama's first official stop in just a bit first we're here with our political correspondent peter craven for some more background peter just how strained are relations right now between the two countries very very strange indeed i think i mean nobody for example brian and you will know this is here in germany has forgotten the day of the nazi comparisons the nazi jibes that were hold by president to go on and others in recent months in the last couple of years a german nobody's forgotten that perhaps much more important though is the crackdown on suspected of members of the opposition following day failed coup in twenty sixteen that has been relentless and is ongoing that has seen so many people end up in turkish prisons you know in here in germany you speak to turkish people and they tell you i know somebody who is in prison i know somebody who's been in prison for months without charge we hear about. dozens of turkish journalists who were imprisoned i'm a journalist it's painful it's dismaying so that's how very many people here in germany have feeling at this point in time we're getti

fobbing thanks so much for now would be getting back to you of course out today we're back with peter craven from the political euro in the studio with me good to peter is the organization financed by the turkish government here in germany that funds the mosques and islamic scholars islam islam are training there's a lot of calls right now to outlaw this group and to end the funding from turkey and he fills in on that debate not necessarily i mean the main thing at the moment is it's a case that is being made that there's too much militaristic talk too much nationalist nationalistic talk we mentioned the cross border operation against syrian kurds in a frame province that is being greeted by some in moms in. churches mosques there are by the way the organization has nine hundred mosques across germany it's incredibly influential in the turkish community it's very suspicions as well that the mosques have been used for spying on members of the community and reporting back to ankara where as you point out the funding and the political support comes from so there are moves by the office for the

a low and welcome to focus on europe with me peter craven and countries across europe a facing the challenge of how to respond to racism and xenophobia as well as to the threat posed by the far right and germany is certainly no exception as was clear recently in the eastern city of candidates the mood turned ugly in the center of the city there were reports of people.

around that ball you our viewers will see there is this flow that's the german word for refugees peter craven back to you in the studio that is at the center of this ball being tossed back and forth we're talking about a lot of metaphors today that is the central issue in many ways being discussed today what to do about the refugee situation not only in turkey and in syria but in general and it is a position that on the macro is changing. it is an absolutely central issue and i would just like to make one small point here that i think is very very important is that we do tend in the west in germany in liberal circles to demonize the turkish president trichet time. and find all sorts of reasons to prove that he's a dust pots and a dictator and if there are very many good reasons for coming to that kind of assessment on the refugee issue it is i would like to say it's not just opportunism that's why i cautiously earlier used the word hosting that turkey has proved to have sort of also as a charitable instinct says proved willing to take in so many refugees and also give them sort of near access

oh and welcome to focus on europe with me peter craven and countries across europe a facing the challenge of how to respond to racism and xenophobia as well as to the threat posed by the far right and germany is certainly no exception as it was clear recently in the eastern city of candidates the mood turned ugly in the center of the city there were reports of people.

market for us and bellevue palace thanks so very much for now and our political correspondent peter craven has been talking with international journalists about eddie long's visit here in germany and d.-w. news talk show quadriga will have more live coverage first let's join peter and quadriga which asks the question aired on in germany friend or foe. well in a very warm welcome indeed to quadriga coming to you from the hall to berlin and this week to focus on the controversial state visit to germany by turkish president richard tired head of one who is being given the full red carpet treatment and on the eve of his visit the turkish media said that he wants to put an end to recent tensions between ankara and berlin but after a vitriolic verbal attacks on germany the arrests of german citizens on the brutal crackdown on the turkish opposition can the president add won't be taken at his word the fact is the two sides need each other more than ever before turkey is facing a crippling economic crisis and wants germany's backing berland for its ankara to release those german prisoners in retur

more about this visit now with political correspondent peter craven with us this morning good morning peter what's going to happen today here in berlin was almost on the schedule initially the president had one will be going to bellevue palace as the official residence is you know frankfurt to steinmeier the german head of state the german president where there's going to be some ceremonials military honors for the president which is controversial but then there's going to be some frank talking between frank foster steinmeyer and president when he says it's time i says he's not going to beat about the bush is going to address address the difficult issues of human rights in turkey and what have you so be a similar meeting with angela merkel shortly after that and a similar agender i'm sure that she too is saying she's going to press the turkish leader on the rule of law and human rights in turkey is going to be protests in the house of berlin it's four o'clock ish local time this afternoon groups are going to go to one protest. ten thousand are expected to rally possibly more and this

o n welcome to focus on europe with me peter craven and countries across europe a facing the challenge of how to respond to racism and xenophobia as well as to the threat posed by the far right in germany is so.

zero and welcome to focus on europe with me peter craven and countries across europe facing the challenge of how to respond to racism and xenophobia as well as to the threat posed by the far right and germany is certainly no exception as it was clear recently in the eastern city of camden it's the mood turned ugly in the center of the city there were reports of people who looked like foreigners being chased down by the mob following the murder of a thirty five year old german man two suspects one syrian and one iraqi were taken into custody while hundreds of supporters of far right groups in the reward it through the streets so what is the best way to stand up to the aggression and the violence posed by the far right well let's go further north to the small village of yama in the state of mecklenburg full polman sometimes described as a neo nazi village and there we meet burkett oh my and her husband holst a brave couple who say they won't back down despite serious and repeated threats to their safety. check it out this is not just a rock festival it's actually a protest every summer be a