In the days before Vladimir Putin launched his invasion, rumours started to swirl in Odesa that its mayor had ordered one million red roses from Ecuador to adorn Russian troops upon their eventual arrival into the city.

       The ties that bind Odesa and Russia stretch back many centuries, running along historical, cultural and family lines. In the late 1790s, the empress Catherine the Great helped build the modern foundations of the city, which, to this day, remains distinctively Russian in its character, language and outlook.

       But, despite these deep-seated connections, there is no intention to welcome Putin’s soldiers with open arms - the flowers were ordered to mark International Women’s Day, a national holiday for Ukraine - and nor is there any desire within Odesa to step back from the Ukrainian resistance.

       “We’re ready for the attack,” says Irina Grigorieva, one of the many citizens of the city who has yet to flee. “Many of our soldiers are gathered to defend us. We don’t want any Russian occupation. I want to be free in my thoughts. I want to be free in my feelings. In my words.”

       Although the worst of the fighting has yet to reach Odesa, located in the south-west of Ukraine on the Black Sea, there is a sense that it is only a matter of time. “We are all pretty sure that they will try to take the city,” says Solomiia Bobrovska, an MP and former acting governor of Odesa.

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       There have already been sightings of Russian saboteurs, who have attempted to plant military supplies in the city and carry out reconnaissance, while president Volodymyr Zelensky claimed over the weekend that the Kremlin was preparing to bombard Odesa.

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       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Ukrainian soldiers from the 'Azov' battalion guard their base in Mariupol, Donetsk

       EPA

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Children were transferred from orphanages in Donetsk and Makeyevka to escape the fighting between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian separatists

       Reuters

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Ukrainian servicemen captured by pro-Russian separatists sit on the ground as they are assigned to clean a street in Snizhne in the Donetsk region

       Reuters

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A view inside the Youth Culture Centre destroyed by pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk

       Getty

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A woman holds a portrait of her dead son as she speaks during a rally in front of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's office in Kiev

       AFP

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A boy ascends the stairs of a bomb shelter after the shelling in the Petrovskiy district in Donetsk

       AP

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A medic looks at thirty coffins prepared for the funerals of pro-Russian rebels killed during heavy fighting at Donetsk airport, outside a Donetsk morgue

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Relatives mourn near the coffin of Mark Zverev, a taxi driver shot dead during clashes at the Donetsk airport between Ukrainian troops and the pro-Russian rebels, during his funeral in the village of Grabari on the outskirts of Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Medical workers carry a wounded pro-Russian militant on a stretcher after armed clashes occured between pro-Russian gunmen and Ukrainian troops in Slavyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A member of a newly-formed pro-Russian armed group called the Russian Orthodox Army mans a barricade near Donetsk airport

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Black smoke rises from a shot down Ukrainian Army helicopter outside Slovyansk

       AP

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A woman is overcome with emotion as she looks at blood stains and damage around a wrecked truck of supporters of the self-proclaimed 'Donetsk People's Republic' on road leading to the Donetsk International Airport

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A local man looks at damage near a wrecked truck of supporters of the self-proclaimed 'Donetsk People's Republic' on road leading to the Donetsk International Airport

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A bloodstained icon of Jesus is seen among blood soaked shattered glass atop a wrecked truck near the Donetsk airport

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A family member attends a funeral for Olga Prokhorenko (60) who was killed by shrapnel after Ukrainian government forces shelled their location, during the funeral in Slovyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A woman reacts after seeing the lifeless body of a man killed by shrapnel following a shelling from Ukrainian government forces in Slovyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russian militants take position on the roof of the international airport of the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A woman embraces a pro-Russian separatist from the "East" battalion during a rally in the eastern city of Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A Ukrainian helicopter Mi-24 gunship fires its cannons against rebels at the main terminal building of Donetsk international airport

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A pro-Russian gunman changes his position near the airport, outside Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A pro-Russian gunman aims his weapon near the airport, outside Donetsk. Ukraine's military launched air strikes against separatists who had taken over the airport in the eastern capital of Donetsk in what appeared to be the most visible operation of the Ukrainian troops since they started a crackdown on insurgents

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russians ride on a truck in Donetsk. A convoy of an armored personnel carrier and seven trucks carrying several hundred heavily armed men drove through central Donetsk and gunmen got out of the trucks, stood to attention and gave shots in the air in jubilation as a crowd of several thousand supporters cheered them and chanted: "Heroes!"

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis An elderly woman leans against the chest of a pro-Russian gunman in Lenin square in Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russian militants guard a psychiatric hospital after shell explosions during the fighting between pro-Russian militants and the Ukrainian army, in Semyonovka village, outside Slavyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Ukrainian troops stand guard at a checkpoint on the road near the eastern city of Izum, Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Members of the Democratic Alliance party take part in a performance in front of the French embassy in Kiev. Protesters set up a pool with the blood of animals and models of warships in a protest against French plans for the sale of two Mistral helicopter carriers to the Russian Navy

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A man carries a portrait of pro-Russian activist Vadim Hudich, who was killed in a shooting incident at the head of a funeral procession in the eastern Ukranian town of Krasnoarmeisk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A cyclist rides near of pro-Russian barricade in Slaviansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Ukrainian soldiers stand guard at a checkpoint not far from Slaviansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis People celebrate as they gather for the announcement of the referendum results on the status of the Republic of Lugansk, at the square before the monument of Shevchenko in Lugansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russian armed men stand guard as people hold a rally to mark and celebrate the announcement of the results of the referendum on the status of Luhansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A Pro-Russian armed militant stands guard as a man casts his vote during a referendum organized by the so-called Donetsk People's Republic members, near of their checkpoint in Slavyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A woman is led aside as her partner is detained and taken away by Ukrainian security forces for being aggressive at an army checkpoint during a referendum on self-rule in the southeastern port city of Mariupol

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A voter is seen inside a voting booth at a polling station during the referendum on the status of Donetsk region in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Members of a local election commission sort ballots as they start counting votes of referendum on the status of Luhansk region in Luhansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Members of a local election commission empty a ballot box as they start counting votes of the referendum on the status of Donetsk region in Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Members of a local election commission empty ballot boxes as they start counting votes after a referendum, at a polling station in Lugansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Local residents watch as others give first aid to a man who was shot in the leg by Ukranian militia in the village of Krasnoarmisk. Eyewitness said that Ukranian militia tried to stop the referendum voters briefly taking the City Hall of Krasnoarmisk, where unarmed pro-Russian supporters were gathering. Reportedly the Ukranian militia came out out the building and started shooting at the people, killing at least one man and leaving at least two others injured

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Local people take part in a referendum organized by the so-called Donetsk Republic members, at a polling station in Mariupol

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Residents of eastern Ukraine began voting on an independence referendum that was organized by pro-Russian separatists and rejected by the government in Kiev. Russian-speakers and supporters of Moscow have been rallying in the region since March, when a referendum on independence led to Russia's annexation of Crimea

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Members of a local election commission count votes after a referendum organized by the so-called Donetsk People's Republic members at a polling station in Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A nurse casts her vote into the mobile ballot box carried by a referendum helper while elder patients look on in a hospital corridor, during the referendum organized by the so-called Donetsk Republic members in Mariupol

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis An armed pro-Russian activists stands guard near a ballot box during a referendum organized by the so-called Donetsk People's Republic members, at a polling station in Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A Ukrainian serviceman speaks on a phone at a checkpoint outside the southeastern port city of Mariupol

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A man ticks his ballot inside a polling booth at a polling station during a referendum in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Voters visit a polling station to take part in the referendum on the status of Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis An Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) with a Russian flag drives through the center of Slaviansk during the day of referendum organized by the so-called Donetsk People's Republic members in Slavyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A statue of Lenin is placed in front of a pro-Russian barricade on the outskirts of the eastern Ukrainian town of Slavyansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A feamle veteran (C) sings during 'Victory Day' celebrations in Donetsk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Fire fighters tackle the fire in the Mariupol police station in the Mariupol police station

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis People stand near the burning Mariupol police station

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Russians and Ukrainians hold Ukrainian and Russian national flags during a protest outside the European Union office in Athens

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Multi-medalled local World War II veteran Alexander Ionov stands alongside a T-34 tank, which rolled up in front of the Ukraine Security Service barricades in Lugansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russia separatists carry the coffin of one of their comrades during the funeral of three combatants and a civilian who were killed in clashes between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russia separatists at the town of Slaviansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russian activists hold a Russian tricolor flag as they gather outside the Regional Interior Ministry building in Lugansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis An armed pro-Russian activist in casual street wear instead of military camouflage stands on the steps of the Regional Interior Ministry building in Lugansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis The self-styled mayor of Luhansk region Valery Bolotov (C) holds an ignition key for a "Tigr" in Luhansk. The Tigr, a military light armoured vehicle, was donated by the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia to pro-russian activists

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Pro-Russian activists gather on the steps of the Regional Interior Ministry building in Lugansk. Pro-Russian forces in Ukraine have been pressing for the referendum in the provinces of Lugansk and Donetsk, arguing that they want to be independent from Ukraine and merged with a greater Russia

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A man (C) who appears to be a member of the media as he wears a press badge stands between pro-Russian activists and speaks to a crown outside the Regional Interior Ministry building in Lugansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Ukrainian soldiers stand guard beside an armoured personnel carrier at a checkpoint in Mariupol. Ukrainian forces seized the rebel-held city hall in the eastern port city of Mariupol, driving out pro-Russian activists, then withdrew, making no attempt to hold onto the building

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Armed pro-Russian protesters take up positions by the railway lines, near Slaviansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Four pro-Russian militiants lay on the ground with hands tied after being arrested on suspicion of the implementation of MANPADS (Man-portable air-defense systems) shots to a helicopter of the Ukrainian forces at a checkpoint near Slavyansk. Ukraine's defence ministry raised the toll during an assault on the rebel-held town of Slavyansk to two of its helicopters shot down and two servicemen killed. Authorities say the pro-Russian insurgents used shoulder-launched rockets to bring down the two Mi-24 helicopters. Earlier, the interior minister said one of those killed was a helicopter pilot

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A woman kisses the shroud during a funeral of a man, who was killed during clashes between Ukrainian and pro-Russian forces in Slaviansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Relatives react during a funeral of a man, who was killed during clashes between Ukrainian and pro-Russian forces in Slaviansk

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis A referendum on independence for eastern Ukrainian independence needs to be delayed and peace restored in the region, said Russian President Vladimir Putin even as government and separatist forces clashed anew

       In pictures: The Ukraine crisis Ukraine crisis Local people and relatives weep during a funeral, in Slaviansk, Ukraine, 07 May 2014, of a man, who was killed during clashes between Ukrainian and pro-Russian forces in Slaviansk

       To do so would no doubt bring huge destruction to the city’s ports and harbours, which, since the days of Catherine of Great, have breathed life into the country’s economy. Today, the three major ports of the Odesa region account for 70 per cent of all Ukrainian exports, much of which are grain and vegetables.

       But with the city’s ports no longer operating, it is not just the Ukrainian economy which stands to suffer. Hanna Shelest, a Black Sea security expert who has advised the national government, warns that countries in Asia and the Middle East which rely on Odesa for their food are at risk of missing out on supplies and being forced to pay extortionate prices for alternative sources.

       This is “one key reason” why Putin will seek to capture the city, Shelest believes - both to further cripple Ukraine during the current invasion and then later exploit its riches for Russian gain.

       As the home of the Ukrainian navy since the 2014 annexation of Crimea - the location of the old headquarters - there is also the military and strategic appeal of Odesa, she adds. In capturing the city’s ports, Russia would be able to further extend its presence in the Black Sea.

       “The navy is very determined and highly motivated after Crimea to fight and they know what to expect,” Shelest says. “But at the same time, Russians will heavily target Odesa to punish the Ukrainian navy.”

       In anticipation of the bloodshed, some citizens have already chosen to flee. Anastasia, a teacher at a Russian-speaking school in Odesa, moved to Bucharest not long after the bombs started falling in the east of Ukraine.

       She has a duty to her students, who are continuing to receive their education in a building lent by the Romanian government, but regularly keeps in touch with her husband, who has remained behind in Odesa.

       “Only the men who had military experience are receiving guns, but there are also those who are helping to prepare the city, like my husband,” says Anastasia. “They are bringing sand from the beaches, making barricades in the streets and putting tape on windows to protect against explosions.

       “If you walk in the streets of Odesa, it’s not empty. Life is going on, but it’s another type of life.”

       People stand in a line as they arrive on a train from Odesa, Ukraine, at the station in Przemysl, Poland

       (AP)

       Despite being born in Russia and spending most of her time in Odesa speaking the language, along with the majority of the population, she has now switched to Ukrainian - a small but significant act of defiance, one that has also been adopted by the city’s mayor, Gennadiy Trukhanov, renowned for his pro-Moscow views.

       “We have started to talk Ukrainian to each other because we don’t want anything to do with our neighbour,” says Anastasia. “So before we were neutral. Russian was our language. This was our culture as well; we read Russian books and everything. But now of course, they’re killing our country. Russia is not welcomed in Odesa in any way.”

       It’s the sort of statement that could only be made in war, one that pits friends and families against each other. Indeed, in a survey conducted last September, 68 per cent of Odesans said they agreed with the notion that Russians and Ukrainians are “one people”.

       Questions are now being asked of how Putin’s forces will attempt to launch their assault on the city. Some have speculated that the Kremlin is reluctant to subject Odesa to the same scale of bombing seen in other cities due to its Russian connections.

       “Odesa is very emotional for many Russians,” says Shelest, a resident of the city. “To start shelling us as hard as Kharkiv would be disastrous for PR. Any destroying of Odesa downtown, which is well known for many people in Russia, would be like targeting their own territory.”

       Beyond matters of sentiment, there is also the fact that Putin’s soldiers have not travelled that far south-west in Ukraine, with his forces bogged down in heavy fighting on the outskirts of many eastern cities.

       The extent of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

       (Press Association Images)

       Russian’s navy dwarfs Ukraine’s, and the Kremlin’s war ships have already been asserting themselves in the Black Sea by attacking military outposts and sinking commercial ships, but any sea-based assault on Odesa would need “serious back-up from the land” to have any hope of landing troops on the city’s now fortified beaches, says Shelest. “It’d be extremely illogical to attempt this.”

       There is also the prospect of Russia turning to Transnistria to help launch what Bobrovska sees as a “potential second front”. The unrecognised breakaway state, located on the border with Moldova and Ukraine, is under the full control of Moscow and is stationing around 1,400 Russian troops, which could be used in any attack on Odesa.

       It’s not clear if such forces would ultimately be willing to engage in the war, according to Shelest, while bridges between Transnistria and the Odesa region have already been destroyed. But the threat and fear nonetheless remain.

       In the meantime, the city has no choice but to wait and watch as the rest of the country burns and bleeds. If and when Putin’s forces turn their sights westward, Odesa will not go down without a fight - irrespective of its Russian roots. “As a port city, they have their own mentality,” says Bobrovska. “No one can rule them. No one can tell them what to do.”

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       But beneath this spirit of resilience there remains a lament for the return of a life that Odesa, and Ukraine, once knew. “I want to just feel the same as I felt before this all started,” says Grigorieva. “I had dreams, I had plans, I had goals and I had a future.”