Newly appointed German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich told the gathering of Muslim leaders in Berlin that he wants to "work together on preventing radicalization and extremism."

The minister was under pressure to repair ties with Germany's Muslim population, following comments made on his first day in office. He said in early March that, historically, Islam was not a part of German society.

Before the meeting, Friedrich defended his earlier statements telling public broadcaster ARD: "The character of our country, our culture through the centuries, our value system is Christian and occidental," Deutsche Welle quoted him as saying.

Earlier, Germany's new interior minister has said Islam does not "belong" in the country, reopening a bitter debate over the integration of Germany's 4 million Muslims.