Turkey could establish a buffer zone to defend its borders with Iraq and Syria from Islamic State (IS) militants, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said. After a trip to Qatar Erdogan told journalists the Turkish army is now developing the plan which will have to be inspected by the government, according to the Daily Sabah.

Lawmakers in Ukraine have passed a bill introduced by President Petro Poroshenko envisaging limited self-determination for the country’s east. Ukraine’s government is now calling for local elections (both municipal and general) to be held on December 7 in self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics”.

Egypt’s President Abdulfatah Al-Sisi discussed with French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian bilateral relations on several fields, namely combatting terrorism. The encounter was held in the attendance of Egypt’s Minister of Defence Sedki Sobhi. The two sides discussed regional and international affairs of mutual significance, particularly m