Top Russian chess player suspended for supporting war on Ukraine

Russian chess grandmaster Sergey Karjakin received a six-month ban Monday from taking part in competitions for expressing his support for Russia's war on Ukraine.

"Sergey Karjakin is found guilty of breach of article 2.2.10 of the FIDE Code of Ethics and is sanctioned to a worldwide ban of six months from participating as a player in any FIDE rated chess competition, taking effect from the date of this decision, 21 March 2022," the International Chess Federation (FIDE) said in a statement.

"The statements by Sergey Karjakin on the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine have led to a considerable number of reactions on social media and elsewhere, to a large extent negative towards the opinions expressed by Sergey Karjakin."

On Sunday, the 32-year-old Karjakin published an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin on social media in which he publicly supported Russia's war and said his country is fighting for "the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine with its ruling regime, which has put the security of all of Europe and our country at risk for the sake of its political goals and ambitions."

Russia's war against Ukraine, which began on Feb. 24, has been roundly denounced by the international community and has been met with biting Western and allied sanctions and export controls. The economic fallout has been exacerbated by an exodus of global firms from Russia.

At least 925 civilians have been killed during the war and 1,496 have been injured, according to the UN's tally.

The international body warns, however, that the true toll is "considerably higher."