Ukraine puts pressure on FIDE General Assembly over admission of Russians — source

BUDAPEST, September 21. /TASS/. Ukraine’s representatives at the General Assembly of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) have been putting pressure on other delegates in the light of the possibility Russian and Belarusian players may regain their rights, several sources in the FIDE congress have told TASS.
On September 17, the FIDE congress opened in Budapest. The General Assembly, which will consider the issue of the full-fledged return of Russian and Belarusian players, is being held on September 21-22. In August, the president of the Kyrgyz Chess Federation, Babur Tolbayev urged the full-fledged return of Russians and Belarusians to competitions under FIDE auspices.
“Representatives of the Ukrainian delegation have been approaching other delegates and FIDE representatives on the sidelines to utter open threats and to blackmail them in case they support the idea of returning Russians and Belarusians,” the source told TASS.
Earlier, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry speaker Georgy Tykhy said that Ukraine would initiate sanctions against FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich, if the rights of the Russian and Belarusian chess federations were restored.
On September 21, Tolbayev told TASS that he would ask the FIDE General Assembly to conduct the vote on the reinstatement of the Russians and Belarusians by secret ballot.