David R. Sands
Articles by David R. Sands
Russia wary of Trump talk of rejoining G-7
President Trump is ready to welcome them back, but Russian officials reacted warily to talk of rejoining the Group of Seven club of leading industrial powers. Published August 21, 2019
China’s military forms new ‘counterterror’ unit in restive Uighur region
China's military has set up a new counterterrorism special ops unit based in the restive Xinjiang province, home to the Uighur minority that has long chafed under the leadership of the Communist Party in Beijing. Published August 20, 2019
A chess columnist’s tribute to chess columnists
The estimable Chess Journalists of America has just handed out its 2019 awards and our humble little effort here has once again been named the "best regular newspaper chess column" in the country. Published August 20, 2019
Wilbur Ross: Hong Kong is ‘an internal matter’ for China
The Trump administration is watching the unrest in Hong Kong closely, but the pro-democracy protests that have rocked the city are an "internal matter" for China, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Wednesday. Published August 14, 2019
Illya Nyzhnyk shuts the door at U.S. Open with last-round chess win
The U.S. Open is looking pretty spry these days, considering it just turned 120. The nation's premier open chess tournament passed the latest milestone this month, providing a good bit of drama along the way. Ukrainian-born GM Illya Nyzhnyk claimed solo first and a spot in next year's U.S. Closed Championship with a dominating 8-1 result in Orlando, Florida. Published August 13, 2019
A chess finale worthy of the moment at Washington International
There are fun games and there are decisive games, and it's not often the twain can meet. Published August 6, 2019
Kelly Craft confirmed to be U.N. ambassador by Senate
Despite a last-minute push by minority Democrats, the Senate on Wednesday approved President Trump's choice of Kelly Craft, a former ambassador to Canada and major donor to Republican causes, as the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Published July 31, 2019
In chess, the king is not always a royal pain
It is not, in fact, always good to be the king. In chess, the king is both indispensable and a giant pain in the neck, an entitled, one-square-at-a-time attention hog who needs constant protection and reinforcement. Still, there are some rare examples where the king gets to shine, when His Majesty takes the initiative and doesn't just sit there leading from behind. Published July 31, 2019
Another Beltway back-up as New Yorker magazine deliveries delayed
A huge back-up on Washington's notorious Beltway has caused another traveler to miss a scheduled appointment. Published July 26, 2019
Awonder Liang, Carissa Yip, Alex Shabalov shine in triple chess championships
Two weeks' worth of hard work at the Chess Club of St. Louis produced three new U.S. champions, with 16-year-old Wisconsin GM Awonder Liang recording a rare three-peat as U.S. junior champion, edging out New Jersey GM Nicolas Checa in a playoff after the two tied in the 10-player invitational at 7-2. Published July 23, 2019
Seniors sizzle among a tsunami of summer chess events
The so-called dog days for summer can leave a chess columnist dog tired. That's because the hot weather and vacation schedules annually combine for a tsunami of summer tournaments, from superelite events in Europe to national championships in Norway and Uzbekistan to a slew of strong Swiss tournaments across the U.S. Published July 16, 2019
China-led Asian investment bank holds annual meeting in heart of Europe
A Beijing-based infrastructure funding bank strongly backed by the Chinese government is holding its annual meeting Friday in Luxembourg, the first time the event has been held in Europe and a sign the bank may be looking beyond Asia for investment opportunities. Published July 12, 2019
U.S. women’s chess champ Jennifer Yu seeks fresh challenge in U.S. juniors
She first appeared in this space five years ago when we wrote of Ashburn, Virginia, middle-schooler Jennifer Yu's impressive second-place finish in the Under-2200 section of the 2014 D.C. International. Published July 9, 2019
Opening a path to chess immortality
Winning a world championship is nice, but if you really want to enhance your brand in chess, invent an opening. Published July 2, 2019
Aleksandra Goryachkina, a dark horse, gallops to win in women’s chess candidates
If you overlook her Under-10, Under-14 and Under-18 girls' world championships, her two world junior girls' titles and her two Russian women's championship belts, there was no way one would have predicted 20-year-old GM Aleksandra Goryachkina's stunning result in this month's women's candidates' tournament in Kazan, Russia. Published June 25, 2019
Iranian commander: Could have shot down manned U.S. plane if we wanted to
A top commander of the hard-line Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps said Friday that his forces could have shot down a U.S. Navy P8 plane with 35 people of board on the same day it downed an unmanned U.S. surveillance drone, but "refrained" from doing so to send a message to Washington. Published June 21, 2019
Chess: This Cherry Blossom Classic was a pip
The annual Cherry Blossom Classic last month attracted perhaps the strongest field in its seven-year history. Published June 11, 2019
South Korea poll shows falling support for diplomatic outreach to Pyongyang
The number of South Koreans supporting President Moon Jae-in's diplomatic engagement with North Korea has fallen markedly as two summits between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un have yet to deliver a major breakthrough, a new poll found Friday. Published June 7, 2019
Fierce fighting in tournament to challenge for women’s chess crown
For the second week in a row, we're going to focus on the women. and the Middle East. Today, we move to the Big Girls' Table, where eight of the world's strongest female grandmasters are battling it out this month for the right to challenge Chinese women's world champ GM Ju Wenjun later this year. Published June 4, 2019
Shinzo Abe, Japan PM, to head to Iran after Trump summit: Report
Fresh off of hosting President Trump in Tokyo late last month, Japanese Prime Minister ShinzoAbe is planning a three-day trip to U.S. arch-foe Iran next week, the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper reported Monday. Published June 3, 2019
