Vladimir Putin may have angered the international community by snatching Crimea from Ukraine, but opinion polls show that nearly 80 per cent of Russians approve of the move. It is hard to overstate the importance of this Black Sea peninsula in the Russian psyche. The region was originally conquered by Catherine the Great's favourite general who said 'Russia needs its paradise.' But now millions of Ukrainian and foreign tourists are staying away.
The Russian government is trying to fill the gap by urging employers to send staff on subsidised breaks in Crimea. A holiday in the newly annexed peninsula has become every Russian's patriotic duty, despite continuing fighting in nearby Eastern Ukraine and the recent downing of the Malaysian airliner.
For Our World, Lucy Ash has been to meet tourists and locals in Yalta, one of Crimea's busiest resorts.
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