The Daily Beast: Russia puts boots on the ground in Syria By The Daily Beast. Published Sept. 2, 2015 at 9:47 am Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during his meeting with Syrian Opposition Council President Khaled Khoja in Moscow on Aug. 13, 2015. Photo by AFP The numbers are small, but Moscow may be looking at its own version of mission creep in the treacherous Middle East. Read more here