Russia's government has allocated more than 4.3 billion rubles ($56.3 million) from its reserve fund to support the tourism sector in the annexed Crimean peninsula and the city of Sevastopol, saying thousands of businesses have been hit by the fallout from Ukrainian attacks.
The funding comes as Kyiv steps up its campaign to disrupt Russian logistics and infrastructure supporting the occupied peninsula, leaving parts of Crimea grappling with fuel shortages, power outages and water disruptions that have dealt a heavy blow to the peak summer tourist season.
The government said the payments would support employees at more than 4,600 tourism-related businesses that had found themselves in a "difficult situation" because of Ukrainian attacks.
Of the total package, 3.7 billion rubles ($48.5 million) will go to Crimea, while 584.5 million rubles ($7.7 million) has been allocated to Sevastopol, according to the government's press service.
The Russian Tour Operators Association (ATOR) said that by the end of July around 1 million trips to Crimea and Sevastopol had been canceled.
