Sergei Polunin, a former star at London’s Royal Ballet, has announced his decision to leave Russia with his family.

The Ukrainian-Russian dancer – famous for his tattoos of Vladimir Putin – was one of the most prominent stars to back Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and military offensive in Ukraine, despite being Ukrainian-born.

But in a rambling message posted to his Instagram account on Wednesday, Polunin wrote: “My time in Russia ran out a long time ago, it seems at this moment that I have fulfilled my mission here.” The post had first appeared on his little-read Telegram account on Sunday.

The 35-year-old did not give a specific reason for leaving, but said that “a time comes when the soul feels it is not where it should be”.

He said he was leaving with his family – his wife, Yelena, and three children – but “where we will go is not clear so far”. In the summer, the dancer had complained of a lack of security and said he was being followed.

Polunin courted controversy when he backed Putin’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, and gained Russian citizenship in 2019.