Georgia’s new president said Monday that he would press ahead with efforts to deepen the former Soviet republic’s ties with the West despite Russian concerns. European leaders and observers hailed Sunday’s “clean” election won by Georgy Margvelashvili, an ally of billionaire

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad fired Syrian Deputy Prime Minister Qadri Jamil for reportedly meeting with U.S. official in Switzerland.

Bulgaria and Turkey have agreed to create a joint border committee to manage the flux of refugees from war torn Syria, said Bulgarian Foreign Affairs Minister Kristian Vigenin Tuesday.