The city, an island of relative safety surrounded by fighting, has become a hub for humanitarian aid and for people fleeing the war in the Donbas and other parts of Ukraine.
Thousands of Russians have left their country since their government began its invasion of Ukraine. Many have settled in Georgia, a country with a complicated history with its neighbor to the north.
As Russia's war in Ukraine grinds through its fourth week, President Vladimir Putin's greatest accomplishment so far may be one he never intended: a unified Europe.