Source: Middle East Monitor
The Russian military has revealed that over 63,000 troops from its armed forces have fought in Syria since Moscow entered the conflict in 2015, involvement that has turned the tide of the war in the regime’s favour.
The deployment has included some 434 generals over the past three years, and about 90 percent of Russian combat pilots have flown in Syria. The Russian military has also used the conflict to test some of its most advanced weapons, including its latest jets and cruise missiles.
The figures have been revealed after US National Security Adviser John Bolton yesterday stated that Russia was “stuck” in Syria, alleging that Russian President Vladimir Putin told the Trump administration that Moscow could not bring about the withdrawal of Iranian forces from Syria.
“And I don’t think they [Russia] want to be stuck there. I think their frenetic diplomatic activity in Europe indicates that they’d like to find somebody else, for example, to bear the cost of reconstructing Syria – which they may or may not succeed in doing,” he told Reuters.
Read more at: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180823-63000-russia-troops-fought-in-syria-since-2015/