World chess chief faces endgame after EU announces Russia war sanctions

What the report says

BBC World News reports that Arkady Dvorkovich, president of the International Chess Federation, known as Fide, has said he is stepping aside from his duties after being placed on the European Union’s latest sanctions list over Russia’s war in Ukraine. Dvorkovich, 54, is a former Russian deputy prime minister and former Kremlin adviser. The sanctions mean he faces an EU asset freeze and travel ban.

According to the BBC, the EU linked the decision to Dvorkovich’s public positions on Crimea and occupied Ukrainian cities, as well as his role on the board of the Chess Federation of Russia, which the EU said has held events in occupied parts of Ukraine. Dvorkovich said he had “voluntarily” suspended his powers at Fide but told the BBC he had not resigned. He rejected the sanctions as unlawful and unfair, saying they were intended to stop him serving in the chess body.

Ukrainian chess officials welcomed the move. Volodymyr Kovalchuk, first vice president of the Ukrainian Chess Federation, said figures advancing sport in the interests of an aggressor state should not hold senior international posts. Malcolm Pein, England’s Fide representative, told the BBC the development was a major diplomatic success for Ukraine and could reduce Russian influence in global chess.

The dispute comes after years of tension inside Fide following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russian teams have been barred from international chess competitions, and a 2024 Fide vote maintained restrictions on Russia and Belarus. Dvorkovich, first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, had planned to seek another term in September, but the BBC reports his future is now uncertain.