Turkey, as a stabilizing force, has taken a clear stance on the solution of the Syrian crisis, which has been one of the most significant sources of migration in recent years, Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said Wednesday.

Speaking at a workshop on migration and media, Altun said that within this scope, Turkey has ensured security in the country with its Olive Branch, Euphrates Shield and Spring Shield operations, thereby thwarting terrorist threats and enabling displaced Syrians to return home.

"Close to 500,000 of our Syrian brothers have returned securely, voluntarily and in an honorable manner to regions that we have secured in northern Syria," he said. He also reiterated that Ankara’s offer voiced at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to create an environment free of terrorists to enable 1 million Syrians to return did not have the intended effect on Western countries.

He pointed to the fact that no Western country is hosting more than 50,000 Syrian refugees, except for Germany with 530,000 and Switzerland with 130,000.

Noting that Turkey hosts eight times more refugees than Germany, Altun said: "It is not possible to ignore that such a large population has socioeconomic effects on the country it comes to."

Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Turkey has backed moderate opposition groups against the Assad regime and opened its doors to those who had to flee the country to save their lives. Turkey hosts more Syrian migrants than any other country in the world. The country also leads humanitarian aid efforts for Syrians in Turkey and opposition-controlled areas of northern Syria.

Turkey has made large investments in its social cohesion policies to enable Syrians to smoothly integrate into Turkish society.

"Today, unfortunately, we are faced with disinformation campaigns aimed at negatively affecting and shaping the social perception of Syrians living in Turkey in all communication channels, especially on social media platforms," he explained.

He underlined that Ankara will continue to tell the world about Turkey's efforts regarding migrants and how migrant boats full of people left to die are pushed back to Turkish waters and rescued by the Turkish coast guard in the Aegean.

Turkey has repeatedly condemned Greece's illegal practice of pushing back asylum-seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable people, including women and children.

Hundreds of people have died at sea as a number of boats carrying refugees sank or capsized. The Turkish Coast Guard Command has rescued thousands of others.

Turkey and Greece have been key transit points for migrants aiming to cross into Europe, fleeing war and persecution to start new lives. Turkey has accused Greece of large-scale pushbacks and summary deportations without migrants being given access to asylum procedures, which is a violation of international law. It also accuses the European Union of turning a blind eye to this blatant abuse of human rights.

"Refugees and asylum-seekers are not the root of the problem, but the victims of the problem," Altun stressed and added: "Today, populist tendencies in the world of media and politics fuel hatred toward immigrants and asylum-seekers, and unfortunately cause racism and xenophobia to rise."

Citing the U.N., Altun said that the number of international refugees might reach 405 million by 2050.