I have great energy and I have great tasks ahead of me.

Ratings are king and the money keeps flowing, and partisanship is so strong today that people rely on a few sources absolutely instead of thinking critically. So even being a cheerleader for a gameshow-host president with no respect for the rule of law or America's reputation in the world may not be a career-ending move.

It's quite difficult for me to imagine my life without chess.

The highest Art of the Chess player lies in not allowing your Opponent to show you what he can do.

[Vladimir] Putin wants to keep [Bashar] Assad in power and expand his own military base in Syria, whatever the cost. I even believe he has an interest in more and more people fleeing the country. The flow of refugees improves his negotiating position toward the West, including the German chancellor.

For me, chess is a language, and if it's not my native tongue, it is one I learned via the immersion method at a young age.

At a certain point, the atmosphere in the West could change. But I don't see determined political will [for that] at the moment.