Russia’s world chess supremo and orthodox church head face new threats of EU visa bans and asset freezes after the Kremlin lost its Hungarian anti-sanctions firewall.
Arkady Dvorkovich, the Russian head of the Geneva-based International Chess Federation (FIDE) should be blacklisted because he “publicly supported” the Ukraine war, the EU Commission said in its proposal for the 21st round of Russia sanctions, seen by EUobserver on Wednesday (10 June).
Dvorkovich should also be listed because he was part of the Russian Chess Federation (RCF), which normalised the invasion by organising chess tournaments in occupied territories, the EU said.
Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, whose secular name is Vladimir Gundyayev, should also be designated, as “he has consistently justified and advocated in support of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine,” the EU added.
Both names had been previously proposed by the EU only to be vetoed by the Kremlin-friendly government of former Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán.
