Pope Arrives in Germany on First Foreign Visit

Pope Benedict XVI arrived in his native Germany today on his first foreign trip since being elected four months ago.

He landed in Cologne for meetings with other religious leaders and a youth festival attended by thousands of young Catholics.

As he stepped out of his Alitalia jet, Pope Benedict was greeted with loud cheers and chants of "Benedetto, Benedetto" - his name in Italian, before being met by the German president, Horst Koehler, and other politicians.

Pope Benedict did not kiss the ground when he arrived, a popular gesture of his predecessor Pope John Paul ll.

"With deep joy I find myself for the first time after my election to the chair of Saint Peter in my beloved homeland, in Germany," the pontiff said. "I thank God who has enabled me to begin my pastoral visits outside Italy with this visit to the nation of my birth."

The visit to Germany was originally scheduled for Pope John Paul II.

During his four-day trip to the city, the Pope will have meetings with leaders from the Jewish and Muslim religions.

"[They will be] important steps along the journey of dialogue and cooperation in our shared commitment to building a more just and fraternal future, a future which is truly more human," he said shortly after arriving.

Both the Pope and Mr Koehler spoke about Germany's historical role and the work of the German church.

"It is particularly moving, and I can say this also as a Protestant Christian, that a German - one of us - has been made Pope," Mr Koehler said.

"After a Polish Pope, whose country was first to be invaded by the Germans in the second world war, we now have someone from the generation drafted at the close of the war."

The former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was drafted into the German army late in the war but deserted. Like almost all German teenagers at the time, he was forced to join the Hitler Youth.

Mr Koehler added this gave him confidence 60 years after the end of Nazism, and a German Pope was viewed worldwide as a sign of reconciliation.

The Pope's trip will finish with the 20th annual World Youth Day festival, with 400,000 young Catholics expected to attend.

"This is a truly extraordinary event because young from all over world and from all cultures are coming together in a united fashion to search for the truth," the pontiff said.

"It is a great thing to be a part of this event. It is a gift and I will try to do my part with the help of God."

The World Youth Days were launched by Pope John Paul in the 1980s.