Thousands of Russian tourists arrived in Turkey on Tuesday following the resumption of flights between the two countries. 

A Turkish Airlines flight from Moscow was the first to land in Antalya. Turkish authorities estimated that 12,000 tourists would arrive to the Mediterranean coastal city throughout the day.

Russia suspended air service with Turkey on April 15 due to concerns about new strains of COVID-19 in the country. The move dealt a major blow to Turkey’s tourism industry and Turkish officials were unable to convince their Russian counterparts to lift the ban. 

Many speculated that the real reason Moscow suspended the flights was Ankara’s vocal support for Ukraine amid a Russian buildup on the former Soviet country’s eastern border. Turkey has also struck an agreement to sell its Bayraktar drones to Ukraine, delivering six of them so far and prompting stiff rebukes from Moscow. But the resumption of the flights belies that theory, as nothing has changed in terms of Turkey’s Ukraine policy and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is widely expected to take part in a summit on Crimea due to held in Ukraine this fall. Turkey’s official position remains that the peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, must be returned to Ukraine.