Russian forces have foiled a drone attack on an airbase in Syria just days after reports that rebel shelling had damaged several planes, activists say, according to the BBC.
Two Russian servicemen were killed when Hmeymim Air Base in Syria came under mortar fire on December 31, according to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti, referring to the Russian Defense Ministry.
The U.S. is planning to spend more than $200 million to repair and build U.S. military structures and installations on air bases that dot much of Eastern Europe, part of an ongoing initiative to deter Russian aggression, according to AirForceTimes.