Russia's military has begun patrolling a demarcation line between zones controlled by the US-led international coalition's forces and Russian forces in eastern Syria, the TASS news agency cited Moscow as saying on Monday.
"It's the boundary that divides the territory controlled by the international anti-terrorist coalition, the 'East' zone, and the 'West' zone controlled by Russia's forces. Until now there were no patrols by Russian servicemen," a spokesman for Russia's military was quoted as saying.
The spokesman said there were potential Islamic State sleeper cells in the area and that Russia's military was trying to demonstrate its presence.