Brussels (AINA) -- The Assyria Council of Europe, a Brussels based advocacy group, met on Wednesday with the parliamentary state secretary of the German ministry of interior, Mr Peter Altmaier, to discuss the problem of the Assyrian Iraqi refugees in Syria and Jordan.

German politicians have shown an interest in the suffering of the Iraqi refugees and the German minister of interior, Wolfgang Schäuble, initiated discussions among his European colleagues when he proposed the EU should concentrate on resettling Assyrian refugees because they are Christians.

The suggestion is not only controversial in Europe but also among the Assyrian leaders in Iraq. Both religious and political Assyrian leaders have spoken against any resettlement plans for Assyrians to the west.

"Europe cannot afford to accommodate the 2 million non-Muslim Iraqis," said Afram Yakoub of the Assyria Council of Europe. "Any resettlement will only make matters worse for the non-Muslims in general and break the spirit of those left. Instead of resettlement Europe should start to pay more attention to how it can help the Assyrians remain in Iraq."

The European foreign ministers are expected to make a decision on the resettlement of Iraqi refugees next week in Brussels during the meeting of the European Council.