YALTA:
Russian soldiers may not be in Yalta, but locals are worried about
their tourist season as the city on Crimea's Black Sea coast wakes up to
the first spring sun amid fears of a possible war between Ukraine and
Russia.
In the seaside city nestled in the foothills of the
Ukrainian Riviera, police loyal to the authorities in Kiev patrol the
seafront with their hands in their pockets.
"All is well, all is calm," said one of them.
There
are no ships in the port, only five yachts are bobbing on the waves,
sails folded, and a dozen pleasure boats are lined up at the jetty.
"There
are no Russians here, no soldiers, no problems. This is a civilian
port, security is provided by private guards," said Anatoly Sviritov, a
security officer.
It's normal for there to be no tourists yet in the first days of March, said Lilia Ivanova, a travel agency director.
But
the tense political and military situation, loud headlines and photos
of armed and helmeted men in major newspapers around the world, do not
bode well for the tourism season.
Russian forces took de facto
control of Crimea, home to the Kremlin's Black Sea Fleet, following the
ouster on February 22 of Ukraine's pro-Moscow president Viktor
Yanukovych.
The local parliament in Crimea took a step Thursday
towards seceding from ex-Soviet Ukraine, asking to become part of Russia
and pledging a referendum on the subject for March 16.
"We are against Putin's aggression, we fear that it will scare tourists away," said Ivanova.
"There is no tourism where there is terrorism," added the young woman.
An English-language poster on the wall in her Intourist travel agency reads: "Yalta, Crimea's cruise capital."
The city hosts some 10,000 cruise passengers a year and a first cruise ship, from Germany, is expected on April 11, she said.
"We do not know if they will come."
On the promenade, the tricycle rentals, fairground rides, bouncy castles with slides and shooting ranges are deserted.
In the cold wind, several families rush towards the few open cafes.
- 'What happened in Kiev is illegal' -
On the esplanade, pro-Moscow activists have set up a tent under the statue of Lenin.
One of their placards reads "No to NATO", another "Russia protects us from Nazis".
Patriotic songs and Russian flags attract gawkers. Some of them agree to sign a petition.
Businessman
Vitaly Akhmetov, a 33-year-old strapping blond in a black leather
jacket, said he collected "over 27,000 signatures to demand a referendum
on Crimea's future".
"We feel reassured by the fact that Moscow has sent in troops to protect us," he said.
"We
want them to stay. What happened in Kiev is illegal. Ukraine no longer
exists as a country after their revolution. 98 percent of people do not
want to deal with these bandits."
This was where the world was
divided into Western and Soviet spheres of influence and the post-war
geopolitical map was drawn up when Joseph Stalin hosted Franklin
Roosevelt and Winston Churchill in February 1945.
In the palace's
terraced garden overlooking the seashore, Vladislav, Yuri, and Inna bask
in the sun, playing with a cat, and waiting for the start of an
excursion. The teenagers came from central Ukraine to spend some three
weeks in a nearby sanatorium.
"When the crisis began, our parents
called us asking to leave but we reassured them. It is calm here," said
Vladislav with a smile.
"All this is politics. There will be no war," added Yuri.
"The
borders exist, why change them? Nobody is threatening the rights or
lives of Russians in Ukraine. This is propaganda and it will not work."
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