Limassol A Cypriot Russophile city takes sides in Putin's war

Flown out on one of the last flights to leave Kyiv before Russia invaded, the Ukrainians take in the scene: the Mediterranean to their left, a five-star hotel to their right.

- Helena Smith Limassol

“We all work for a multinational IT firm in Cyprus,” says Xenia Karpenko, who since February has been in the seaside resort of Limassol. “Less than 48 hours before the Russian invasion it said: ‘ We’ll fly you out, with your family, your partners, your pets.’ There were 200 of us. Now we have no idea what tomorrow will bring.”

Until Cyprus began cleaning up its act, it was better known as a refuge for high net worth Russians – at least five oligarchs with links to the island are on EU sanctions lists.

No Cypriot city has lured Russians more zealously than Limassol. With its 40,000-strong Russian community, Russian banks, media outlets and privately run Russian schools, it is easy to see why the metropolis is also known as Limassolgrad.

Russian is frequently heard on its boulevards: its speakers account for the vast majority who have also invested in multi million-euro homes to attain citizenship under a now scrapped cash-for-passports scheme, reputed to have raised more than €9bn (£7.6bn).

“We love it here,” says Valentina Ivanova. who was out strolling with her sausage dog. “It’s hard to miss Moscow in the sun, but to be honest the west pushed Russia too hard. Putin didn’t have a choice – he had to go in.”