David R. Sands
Articles by David R. Sands
Elbe River Memorial celebrates U.S.-Russia cooperation amid rising tensions
At a low point in post-Cold War U.S.-Russian relations, a monument is going up this month in the heart of Moscow to celebrate one of the high points of cooperation between the U.S. and the bad old Soviet Union. Published April 5, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: A running chess rivalry between rising powers
In the 16th century it was Spain vs. Italy. By the mid-19th century it was France vs. England. In the middle of the 20th it was the Soviets vs. the rest of the world. Published April 5, 2016
Putin poised to rake in the rubles with arms deals after testing new weapons in Syria
Russian President Vladimir Putin's military campaign in support of Syrian ally Bashar Assad has not only earned Moscow new clout and prestige in the region. Published March 29, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: Sergey Karjakin blitzes Fabiano Caruana to earn shot against Magnus Carlsen
President-elect Donald Trump may find that one of his first post-victory chores will be delivering the world chess championship -- back to the Russians. Published March 29, 2016
Russian Karjakin wins right to challenge for world chess championship
Defeating American Fabiano Caruana with the help of a brilliant rook sacrifice, Russian Grandmaster Sergey Karjakin has won the FIDE chess candidates tournament in Moscow and will face reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen in a title match this November in New York City. Published March 28, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: In a month made for madness, chess as a force for sanity
March is the month of madness -- a good thing if you're a college basketball fan but a more sensitive topic if your game is chess. Published March 22, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: Hou’s on first (again) — Chinese star reclaims women’s world chess title
Leaving little doubt that she is the dominant female player of our time, Chinese GM Hou Yifan easily reclaimed her women's world crown with a Game 9 victory over Ukrainian GM Mariya Muzychuk in Lvov, Ukraine on Monday. Published March 15, 2016
Putin orders surprise start of Russian military withdrawal from Syria
Claiming that his military escalation has achieved its goals, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday he had begun the withdrawal of Russian forces from the country even as the Syrian civil war continues to rage. Published March 14, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: A chess challenger and a champion to be picked in busy March
March will be a productive month on the world chess calendar, with a champion and a challenger to be crowned in the next few weeks. Published March 8, 2016
Russian firm vows to fight to keep U.S. rocket monopoly
Even as the U.S. military pushes to end the country's reliance of Russian-built rocket engines to get its satellites into space, the Moscow-based manufacturer says it is still hopeful to hold onto its American clients. Published March 3, 2016
China wearies of oddball architecture
Chinese officials are done with being the world's Petri dish for growing avant-garde, weird-looking buildings. Published March 3, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: Magnus Carlsen, world chess champion, to defend his title in New York City match
The chess world championship will be coming back to the United States for the first time in more than two decades. Officials of the international chess federation FIDE announced Tuesday that Norwegian world champion Magnus Carlsen will defend his title in a 12-game match to be played in New York City from Nov. 11 to Nov. 30. Published March 2, 2016
Global tensions send Russian vodka exports plummeting 40 percent
Clashes with the West over Ukraine and Syria are hitting home for the Russian economy, as foreign markets for its signature spirit, vodka, fell sharply in 2015. Published February 23, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: The uneasy chess coupling of correspondence and computers
For one who has played and enjoyed correspondence chess dating back to the pre-Deep Blue era, writing about the latest chess-by-mail world championship is a melancholy business. Published February 23, 2016
Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus wins EU concessions despite ‘dismal’ human rights record
European Union foreign ministers this week quietly ended a range of sanctions targeting the regime of longtime Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko and some of the former Soviet republic's largest state-owned firms, despite protests from human rights groups both in Belarus and the West. Published February 17, 2016
Obama stars as poster child for Russian anti-smoking ads
An image of President Obama enjoying a last long drag on a cigarette is being used in a new campaign in Moscow to encourage Russians to give up smoking. The message: Both tobacco and the American president can kill you. Published February 16, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: A chess wrap-up of action from A(nand) to Z(hao)
With some of the world's top male and female players in action this week, we have the chess world covered this week from A (Anand-Aronian) to Z (Zhao-Zhukova). Published February 16, 2016
Antonin Scalia, Supreme Court justice: ‘His contributions to the law are incalculable’
Tom Goldstein, editor of the popular Scotusblog website that tracks the Supreme Court, called Justice Antonin Scalia a "historic figure, surely one of the most influential minds -- on and off the court -- of the last century." Published February 13, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: A Valentine’s Day over-the-board mating match — times three — for chess lovers
It doesn't help to know the doorman at Club 5000, the exclusive venue where love and chess meet. Published February 9, 2016
DAVID R. SANDS: After a long siege, the Berlin Wall starts to come down
Norwegian world champ Magnus Carlsen captured his fifth Tata Steel Masters title, winning the year's first strong event at the Dutch seaside town of Wijk aan Zee with an undefeated 9-4 score, a full point clear of American GM Fabiano Caruana and China's Ding Liren. Published February 2, 2016
