Russia needs active civil society, Merkel tells Putin

HANOVER, Germany (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Germany on Sunday to protests over his human rights and democracy record and a warning from German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Russia needed an active civil society to flourish.

Putin's visit to Germany and the Netherlands, Moscow's biggest trade partners in Europe, was supposed to focus on trade but comes at an awkward time after a wave of state inspections of foreign-funded non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Russia, much criticised abroad.