Novosibirsk residents complain about curbs painted in Ukraine flag colours

Residents of Novosibirsk, a city in western Siberia, have complained after pavement curbs in the city were recently painted in yellow and blue, the colours of the Ukrainian flag.

Head of the property management company, Vladimir Simonov, assured residents in a statement that the paint was already being covered up and that the curb would now be red and blue, Russian news outlet Podyom reported Monday.

According to Simonov, the unpatriotic display was merely accidental as the worker tasked with painting the curb “just so happened” to pick yellow and blue.

This follows a string of cases in which Russian citizens have been reported and charged for displaying colours closely associated with Ukraine. A Moscow resident was fined for “discrediting the Russian army” and handed a military summons on Sunday for dyeing his hair yellow and blue.

A resident of the northwestern Russian city of Vologda was reported to the police in April for posting an “enemy symbol” in a picture which showed her in a yellow jacket against a blue sky background.