EU Sanctions FIDE President Dvorkovich; Anand Steps In As Interim Chief
Thu, 23 Jul 2026
Arkady Dvorkovich suspended his FIDE presidential powers on July 23 after the European Union added him to its 21st Russia sanctions package, triggering an emergency succession under the federation's charter with Viswanathan Anand taking over as interim president.
FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich suspended the exercise of his presidential powers on July 23 after the European Union named him in its 21st sanctions package against Russia. Under Article 19.2 of the FIDE Charter, Deputy President and five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand has taken over as interim president, and the FIDE Council has accepted and ratified the arrangement.The EU's sanctions cite Dvorkovich's seat on the Russian Chess Federation's board of trustees, which organized tournaments in Crimea and the occupied Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, along with his public support for the annexation of those territories and his earlier career in senior Russian government posts. Russia's sports minister, Mikhail Degtyarev, was named in the same package.Dvorkovich keeps the FIDE presidency in title only. The suspension is voluntary, and the sanctions themselves — which include an EU asset freeze and travel ban — are what strip him of any actual authority for as long as they remain in force. "Today, the EU decision to include my name in the 21st sanctions list was published. I want to state unequivocally that I consider this decision unlawful and unfair, and this decision will be immediately challenged by all possible means," Dvorkovich said. "I am confident that justice will prevail."Ukraine's sports ministry, which has pushed for the sanctions, called the move a win in its campaign to isolate Russian sports officials. "Arkady Dvorkovich promotes the interests of the Kremlin while holding the position of president of the International Chess Federation," the ministry said in a statement announcing the decision.The suspension lands in the middle of FIDE's presidential election cycle, with delegates due to vote at the General Assembly in Samarkand this September — the same election Dvorkovich had been contesting for a third term after previously pledging to serve only two. FIDE has given no timeline for how, or whether, he could return to active duties before then.