It is just one sign of how Turkey’s strategy of positioning itself as something of a neutral zone is paying off. The country is attracting workers, money and business from both sides of the conflict — though not everyone is benefiting.

On the one hand, Turkey has supported Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict. Before the invasion, it sold armed drones to the country that have been used to inflict heavy damage on Russian forces. Shortly after the war started, it closed the Turkish Straits — the entry points to the strategically important Black Sea — to all navies and barred Russian military aircraft from its skies, effectively limiting Russia’s reinforcement options. All three countries have a border along the sea.