ISTANBUL –
Tens of thousands of Russians who fled to Turkey after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine have moved to other countries in the past year, pressured by residency problems and rising costs, according to data and interviews, including with nine Russian citizens.
When the war began in February 2022, Turkey, Russia’s Black Sea neighbor and a NATO member, emerged as a magnet for the Russians, especially its largest city Istanbul and the Mediterranean resort of Antalya.
Some of them had opposed the invasion, others sought to protect themselves and their businesses from a wave of Western sanctions imposed on Moscow, including travel bans on Russians to much of Europe.
