Turkey's efforts to curb the mass influx of migrants into the European Union and its helping hand is widely appreciated in Budapest, former Minister and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's senior adviser Géza Szőcs said.

The Hungarian prime minister's senior adviser told Daily Sabah that Ankara's effective efforts to alleviate the overwhelming burden that fell on the shoulders of Europe in the summer of 2015 has been appreciated in Hungary.

"In the light of the problems and in the shadow of growing threats, we particularly appreciate Turkey's efforts in preventing the aggravation of emerging crises hanging over the head of Europe and making the consequences manageable," Szőcs asserted.

Pointing to the battle against terrorism, the admission of asylum seekers and migrants, as well as tackling regional conflicts and the fight against xenophobia, Szőcs said: "All of these constitute worthy grounds for paying our respect to Turkey. And so, it is only natural for us to consistently support Turkey in its efforts and its endeavors to develop closer relations with Europe."

At a time when Turkish-EU relations are at a historic low, Szőcs said cooperation should be the goal. "I firmly believe that we all agree that cooperation shall prevail, and this can only be built upon mutual trust and friendship." Stressing that both sides must believe in mutual respect, trust and friendship, Orban's senior adviser said the international community should be educated on the necessity of addressing the core of the crises. "We all know that we must work to ensure that the international community addresses the root rather than the symptoms of the problems we face," he said.

Szőcs called Turkish-Hungarian relations "excellent." However, he added that the two sides couldn't stop at this point. "We have a solid basis to build on. We have goals, and we face challenges. Therefore, I am urging both sides to be proactive in further strengthening Turkish-Hungarian ties." Ties between Ankara and Budapest are indeed strong. Hungarian Prime Minister Orban said during a visit to Turkey in June that Turkey is protecting all of Europe, not only Hungary, from the flow of irregular migration and added that Hungary is grateful to Turkey for its fight against illegal migration.