According to Russian media, President Putin used this request to mark the beginning of the official deployment of Russian troops in Syria.
Unofficial estimates put the number of Russian troops at 1,700 soldiers, marines and air force personnel, deployed at five bases in northern Syria.
In total 34 Russian aircraft have been sent to and deployed at the Bassel Al Assad airport closed to Latakia in Syria over the last ten days. Additional 12 attack helicopters and several transport helicopters have been deployed at the same air base.
Furthermore Russian forces in Syria have started using UAVs for reconnaissance and surveillance missions against Islamic terrorist organizations in north-west Syria.
Russian fighters and bombers have started flights above northern Syria. Their pilots have been trying to become familiar with the terrain and the targets they will bomb, when Moscow gives its approval.
The last time President Putin asked the Russian Duma to allow the deployment of troops abroad was last year when the Russian Army invaded and annexed Crimea.
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