The Dalai Lama arrived Thursday for a five-day visit to Germany. The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader plans to give four lectures, in Nuremberg, Bamberg, Bochum and Moenchengladbach, and a final speech Monday in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, the Associated Press reported.

He will meet with two state governors from Merkel's conservative party — starting Thursday with Hesse's Roland Koch and then North Rhine-Westphalia's Juergen Ruettgers — as well as Norbert Lammert, president of Germany's parliament, the same source noted.

The Dalai Lama met with Chinese President Hu Jintao before his trip to Germany. He brought into discussion key problems, such as “the current repression,” the release of prisoners and proper medical treatment for the Tibetans injured in the recent unrest. The envoy appealed for an end to China’s “patriotic re-education” campaign. The Dalai Lama has denied the accusations of acting to separate the homeland and “orchestrating the inciting of violent acts.” He said he only seeks for cultural autonomy for Tibet and the same rights of freedom of thought, expression, assembly and religion for China’s minorities groups which should be applied, once they’ve been guaranteed by the constitution.

China, which claims that the Dalai Lama is committed to pursuing independence for Tibet, rather than autonomy, protests such meetings between the foreign governments and the Dalai Lama.

The 1989 Nobel Prize laureate said with several occasions that what he sought was “real autonomy” for Tibet, adding that his land and China shared a “universal heritage,” as the AP noted.

“We are not seeking independence,” he said at a news conference with state governor Roland Koch. Koch said that the talks with China’s representatives about the Tibet issue was a success, adding that he hoped “that we can get results” from them soon, the AP noted.