10/24/2023 – More than 200 Russian athletes have turned their backs on their homeland and left the country following Russia's attack on Ukraine. 150 of them are chess players. The Russian Chess Federation now wants to retain its talent through long-term financial support. In the summer, it signed a ten-year contract with Andrey Esipenko (pictured). | Photo: Niki Riga

9/6/2023 – Apart from Kirill Alexeenko (to Austria) and Nikita Vitiugov (to England), the FIDE transfer list shows several other prominent Russian grandmasters who have left their federation after Russia invaded Ukraine. Evgeny Alekseev now plays for Israel and Sanan Sjugirov is the new number one in Hungary.

3/23/2023 – On March 24, the third of four tournaments in the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix Series 2022/2023 will begin in New Delhi, India. Twelve players will compete, but the two Ukrainian grandmasters Anna and Mariya Muzychuk have decided not to take part, presumably because Kateryna Lagno, Polina Shuvalova and Aleksandra Goryachkina, who are members of the Russian Chess Federation but play under the FIDE flag, will be among the participants in New Delhi. | Photo: ChessBase

3/16/2023 – The British chess boom reaches Parliament on Wednesday 22nd March, with two events hosted by the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle. The first will be the opening ceremony of a UK vs. Ukraine Solidarity Match, with the UK number one, Michael Adams, taking on the Ukrainian champion Andrei Volokitin, who is currently living as a refugee in Poland with his family. In the second contest of the day over the board, the GMs will captain teams of MPs and Peers as they battle for bragging rights in a match between the House of Lords and House of Commons.

3/6/2023 – While a number of Russian chess masters have publicly spoken out in favour of stopping the Russian war of aggression, hardly anything has been heard from others. For example, from Vladimir Kramnik, the 14th World Champion (2000 to 2007). Martin Breutigam, author and International Master, asked Kramnik about the long silence – and received a full answer. | Photo: Guido Kohlen

5/26/2022 – At the recently held Malakoff Open near Paris, Woman International Master Anastasiya Rakhmangulova scored 6.5 points in nine rounds to finish in 11th place. While her performance wasn’t extraordinary, the mere participation of the 27-year-old Ukrainian at the annual chess tournament was. She was in Kyiv when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24. | Photo: Anastasiya Rakhmangulova at the Cappelle-la-Grande tournament 2022

5/14/2022 – Four French champions will gather at Blitz Society (pictured), the hip new chess meeting point in the heart of Paris, for a rapid match against four champions from Ukraine. The match will take place on Saturday, May 14, starting at 17.30 CEST. Donations for Ukrainian relief efforts are being collected by UNICEF!

3/31/2022 – Vladimir Putin uses athletes for his propaganda. But Russian chess grandmaster Daniil Dubov is standing up to the Russian leader and the war in Ukraine. In an interview with Europe's premier news magazine, the 25-year-old explains why he is willing to take that risk. "Nuclear war could break out and I could miss the end of the world while analysing the Italian opening." | Photo: Jacek Prondzynski/Newspix/Imago

3/10/2022 – At the beginning of February, the now 12-year old chess talent Tykhon Cherniaiev from Ukraine was about to start a new show on ChessBase called "Challenge Cherniaiev". But then Russia invaded Ukraine and Tykhon and his family had to flee from their home in Kharkiv. Fortunately, many chess fans offered help and Tykhon and his family are now safely housed in a ChessBase flat in Hamburg.

3/8/2022 – In light of the ongoing war in Ukraine, and under the roof of the Year of the Woman in Chess, the FIDE Commission for Women’s Chess established a fundraiser for Ukrainian chess players and their families affected now by war. Also, the FIDE Women’s Commission, in partnership with Chess24, has prepared a series of events on the Women’s Day to support Ukrainian chess players and their families.

3/7/2022 – Under the motto "Chess4Peace" and in solidarity with the people in Ukraine, the Emanuel Lasker Society has issued an appeal for donations. If you want to help, you can donate to an account set up by the Emanuel Lasker Society.