Chess player Sergey Karyakin on Monday, February 28, told why he wrote a letter to the President of Russia Vladimir Putin and how the professional community reacted to it.
“I decided to write this letter because my heart aches for the whole situation. I have many friends and relatives both in Donetsk and in Ukraine, in particular in Zaporozhye, Zhytomyr and other cities, and in general I am very worried about the whole situation. And I believe that our army will be able to restore order there. Unfortunately, a situation arose that required surgical methods and had to start this whole situation, ”he explained in an interview with Izvestia.
Karjakin said that due to his expression of his position, sanctions were imposed against him by the International Chess Federation (FIDE). As the grandmaster noted, 80% of the federation’s funding is provided by Russian sponsors, that is, the organization “cuts the branch it sits on.” Secondly, the chess player expressed bewilderment at the fact that FIDE is interfering in politics.
“And thirdly, it is still not clearer why Russian and Belarusian athletes should compete without a flag and an anthem, for what reason? 99% percent of chess players on both sides did not speak out on this situation at all. Why should they suffer? Karjakin emphasized.
The chess player promised to continue training and also expressed hope that Russian sponsors would hold commercial tournaments.
“But in general, everyone has a different attitude – someone supports Russia, someone is neutral. One grandmaster wrote to me that he is afraid to like my posts, as they will start to deal with him, but in general he supports me. There are also such people, and there are not so few of them, ”concluded Karyakin.
Karjakin published an open letter to Putin on Instagram the day before. The grandmaster said that he grew up in the places where the special operation is now being carried out, and noted that he is closely following the development of the situation in the region.
“For a long eight years, we have been waiting with hope for salvation from countless shelling, the ongoing genocide by the still acting Kiev regime <...> I express to you, our Commander-in-Chief, my full support in protecting the interests of Russia, our multinational Russian people, eliminating threats and establishing peace. I wish you the speedy fulfillment of all the tasks assigned to our valiant army, ”the letter says.
On February 24, Putin announced special operation in order to protect the civilian population of Donbass. After that, the Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky accused the Russian Federation of hitting the country’s military infrastructure and imposed martial law throughout the territory of Ukraine. He also stated that Kyiv breaks off diplomatic relations with Moscow and withdraws from the embassy their diplomats.
February 21 Putin signed decrees recognizing the independence of the DNR and LNR. Also, the Russian leader signed agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with the republics. The treaties were ratified the next day.
The situation in Donbass escalated on February 17, 2022. In the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics reported about intense shelling from the Ukrainian security forces, including from heavy weapons. Republics declared general mobilization and evacuation of civilians to the territory of Russia.
For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.