Istanbul Olga Kuznetsova is also one of them. The young Russian is an opponent of Putin; she actually wanted to flee to Portugal. However, that turned out to be difficult, she says, especially at the time when the Ukraine war was raging, as a Russian it was difficult to establish contact with EU countries. “Turkey is therefore a good option for those who cannot make it to the EU,” says the 27-year-old.
To protect her identity, Kuznetsova’s real name has not been revealed. At the beginning of March she got on the plane to Istanbul, which was full. Above all, she saw young people working in the IT sector. “I work in this field myself and have recognized many,” she explains.
Kuznetsowa now lives in a town on Turkey’s Aegean coast and runs a blog for Russian expats from there.
Olga Kuznetsova is just one of many. Her home country has been isolated in many parts of the world since the invasion of Ukraine. However, one country is trying to attract Russian clients: Turkey. More and more dissidents, but also tourists and Russian super-rich find their way into the neighboring NATO country. Either they are fleeing from Putin and his policies. Or they are looking for ways to circumvent Western sanctions. It’s a diplomatic balancing act for Turkey, but one that’s worth it: in times of record inflation, the Russians pour a lot of money into the coffers.
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A Telegram group called “Russians in Turkey” has grown from 500 to over 10,000 participants since the start of the Ukraine war, members of the group report to the Handelsblatt. Even those planning to find long-term shelter in the EU come to Turkey first for practical reasons. “On the one hand, you don’t need a visa for Turkey,” explains the 27-year-old, “and the officials at the airport don’t ask too many questions if you’re traveling to Turkey as a tourist.”
>> Also read here: The Ukraine war creates a love of convenience between Turkey and the West
According to real estate agents, many Russian families have settled in the Asian part of the metropolis of Istanbul, in the liberal district of Kadikoy. In recent years, many modern housing estates have been built there, not far from the Fenerbahce Istanbul stadium. What increases the attractiveness of Kadikoy: there is a marina there. High inflation in Turkey meant that many Turkish people could no longer afford apartments in this corner of the city. Well-off migrants from Russia are now buying the apartments.
Many Russians have sought refuge in Turkey since the war of aggression against Ukraine.
(Photo: IMAGO/ITAR-TASS)
The demand is so great that several hundred thousand euros are now due for 100 square meters, according to data from the real estate portal Sahibinden.com. “Russian is being heard more and more often on the streets,” says a street vendor.
In February of this year alone, up until the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Russian citizens bought more than 500 houses and condominiums in Turkey – a 50 percent increase from the same month last year.
However, it is not only Russians who are buying apartments in Istanbul and on the Turkish coast, but also more and more Ukrainian citizens, according to official data. According to Turkish Interior Minister Süleiman Soylu, not only 20,000 Russians have fled to Turkey since the outbreak of the war, but also more than 60,000 Ukrainians.
According to the CEO of the real estate portal Emlakjet, Tolga Idikat, search queries from both countries have recently increased significantly. Interestingly, buyers from both countries would look for property in similar areas: in the more liberal districts of Istanbul, but also in the Mediterranean metropolises of Izmir and Antalya. Rents there have tripled in popular areas since the Russian invasion.
“The number of houses cannot meet the demand, which is increasing day by day. The currency advantage that foreign investors have is also driving up prices,” Emlakjet CEO Idikat told Arabnews. According to official figures, 30,000 Russians and 9,000 Ukrainians currently live in Antalya.
Tourists pay $3,400 for a week’s all-inclusive vacation
Turkey is the only NATO member that has not imposed sanctions on Russia since the war began. A sensitive matter for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. At the same time, Turkish arms companies are supplying combat drones to Ukraine. Erdogan is also mediating in the conflict and has already brought the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia to one table. The Turkish government has now blocked the Bosphorus for Russian and other warships – but civilians of all stripes are still welcome in the country.
One of the main reasons for the proximity to Russia: the Turkish economy is heavily dependent on Moscow. Not only does the country import large parts of the oil and wheat it needs from its large neighbor to the north. More than 4.7 million Russian tourists came to Turkey last year. The Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu summed up the situation in his country with the following sentence: “You have to be able to afford sanctions.”
That’s why Russian tourists should go on vacation to Turkey this year. At the beginning of the year, the Association of Turkish Tour Operators (Türsab) gave the number seven million as an expectation for 2022. The war in Ukraine should not stand in the way of this goal.
Several Russian tour operators have therefore been able to conclude agreements with Turkish Airlines and the low-cost airline Pegasus for a total of two million seats for the summer season in the past few weeks. According to the agreements, however, the prices for a week in an all-inclusive hotel on the Turkish Riviera for two people have become extremely expensive: converted in May for a three-star hotel with full catering in a double room would be around 1400 US dollars due. If you want to stay in a five-star hotel in the luxury town of Belek, you have to pay around 3,400 dollars per week for a double room. According to tourism experts, this is up to 50 percent more than in previous years.
Read more about Turkey’s role in the Ukraine war:
Nevertheless, the government and organizers are expecting great demand from Russia – probably also because Turkey will be one of the few travel destinations that Russians can still travel to at all. The government in Ankara even wants to set up a new airline for travelers from Russia. Even a name has already been chosen: Southwind Airlines.
The airline will also be the counterpart to the Russian airline Nordwind in name. It is based in Moscow, but due to Western sanctions, it no longer receives spare parts for its Airbus and Boeing aircraft. In addition, leasing companies that leased aircraft to Nordwind are now demanding that they be returned.
It is planned to use five jets for the new airline, including three wide-bodied and two narrow machines. This would expand capacity by a million airfields.
The super-rich hide their yachts from western authorities
But the government in Ankara doesn’t just take care of normal vacationers from Russia. Several yachts belonging to Russian billionaires are currently anchored in Turkish ports. The Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has housed one of his luxury ships in the Turkish port of Bodrum. His second ship, the “Solaris”, is now in neighboring Turkey, Yalikavak.
Russian oligarchs have rescued many of their luxury yachts to Turkish ports.
(Photo: dpa)
Oleg Deripaska, founder of Russian aluminum giant Rusal, has housed his 73-metre yacht Clio in Göcek in southern Turkey. Authorities in European Mediterranean countries had previously confiscated yachts owned by Russian oligarchs. On April 4, US authorities in Spain also confiscated a Russian yacht. There is no such risk in Turkey.
The fact that Turkey is a good destination for all of them is also due to cooperation in the financial sector. Since 2019, three Turkish banks have signed cooperation agreements with the Russian Mir payment system, which is similar to that of Visa or Mastercard. The two Western credit card providers ended their cooperation with Russian banks at the beginning of the war.
If you have a Russian bank card with the Mir symbol, you can still withdraw cash in Turkish lira from the Turkish state banks Vakif and Ziraat as well as from the private Is Bankasi and thus pay bills – for the rented apartment, for the hotel or the port. The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently even brought cooperation in the currency sector into play. Revenues from the tourism sector and other industrial sectors could soon be settled in rubles and lira instead of US dollars.
Thanks to its diplomatic balancing act, Turkey has become a haven for many layers of Russian society. But this tightrope act now threatens to become a problem not only in foreign but also in domestic politics. The war in Ukraine could trigger tensions on home soil. Because Turkey not only benefits from Russian guests – but also from Ukrainian ones. The third-biggest tourist group came from Ukraine last year, with more than two million tourists. Many have stayed in the same seaside resorts as Russian vacationers.
A reason for the Ukrainian ambassador in Ankara to comment critically on Erdogan’s course in a discussion with fellow ambassadors from the EU. According to the diplomat, his country understands the reality of relations between Ankara and Moscow. “But we’re not entirely happy with it.”
More on this: The Ukraine war creates a love of convenience between Turkey and the West.