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David R. Sands

David R. Sands

dsands@washingtontimes.com

David R. Sands covered numerous beats, including international trade, banking, politics and Capitol Hill, and spent eight years on the foreign desk as senior diplomatic correspondent. He has authored The Times' weekly chess column since 1993.

Articles by David R. Sands

Rahman-Nguyen after 24...a4-a3.

Small countries make big statements at Chess Olympiad

The Olympiad is the moveable feast on the chess menu, a massive biennial team competition that attracts entrants from virtually every country across the globe. There's so much chess going on -- and so much focus on what the Big Boys and Big Girls are doing on the top-seeded boards, that it's easy to overlook some impressive chess played lower down the ratings chart.

October 16, 2018
President Donald Trump smiles as pastor Paula White prepares to lead the room in prayer, during a dinner for evangelical leaders in the State Dining Room of the White House, Monday, Aug. 27, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) ** FILE **

Paula White, Donald Trump’s ‘personal pastor,’ says president serious about faith

The Donald Trump that Florida evangelical minister Paula White sees is a good listener, a man who takes his faith seriously while not always being fluent in "Christianese" and, unlike so many of his predecessors, a politician who has kept his promises to faith voters and evangelical Christian groups after he won the presidency with the help of their votes.

October 11, 2018
Managing Director of International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde talks during a press conference ahead of the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Bali, Indonesia on Thursday, Oct. 11, 2018. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati)

IMF plans talks with Pakistan on debt help

A team of experts from the International Monetary Fund will travel to Islamabad in the coming weeks to discuss a possible financial assistance package for Pakistan -- despite warnings from U.S. lawmakers and the Trump administration that the money would be used to pay off massive debts Pakistan has run up with China.

October 11, 2018
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo briefs reporters at the State Department in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2018. Pompeo has announced that the U.S. is canceling a 1955 treaty with Iran establishing economic relations and consular rights between the two nations. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

U.S. cancels 1950s treaty with Iran after international court rules against sanctions

The Trump administration is pulling out of an "obsolete" 63-year-old friendship treaty with Iran, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Wednesday, just hours after an international tribunal ruled the U.S. government must roll back some of the economic sanctions it has imposed on Tehran over its nuclear and missile programs.

October 3, 2018
Batchimeg-Yu after 46. Be4-b1.

U.S. chess teams off to strong starts in Batumi Olympiad

In an event where a single early setback can put a team irretrievably behind the 8-ball, the U.S. open and women's teams have been taking care of business and are still very much in the running for some medal hardware at the 43rd Chess Olympiad now just past the halfway point in Batumi, Georgia.

October 2, 2018
President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference on trade between the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and the nomination of Brett Cavanaugh to the Supreme Court, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Monday, Oct. 1, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Mexico, Canada trade deal gives Trump China leverage

President Trump's ability to wangle a new deal from NAFTA partners Mexico and Canada will give the White House leverage to take a harder line in the escalating trade war with China, administration backers said Monday.

October 1, 2018
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference regarding the United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) at the National Press Theatre, in Ottawa, Ontario on Monday, Oct. 1, 2018. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Justin Trudeau calls updated NAFTA deal win for Canada

Just an hour after President Trump hailed the proposed revision of the North American Free Trade Agreement as a win for U.S. workers and a vindication of his hard-edged approach to trade, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau predicted the new deal would be "profoundly beneficial" for Canadian families and the middle class.

October 1, 2018
In this Aug. 31, 2018 photo, President Donald Trump gestures while speaking at the Harris Conference Center in Charlotte, N.C. President Donald Trump is escalating his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, suggesting the embattled official should have intervened in investigations of two GOP congressmen to help Republicans in the midterms. Trump tweeted Monday that “investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department.” (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Allies plan U.N. meeting to work around Trump Palestinian aid cut-off

A group of European and Middle Eastern allies of the United States announced plans to meet on the sidelines of next week's U.N. General Assembly gathering in New York to discuss how to make up the shortfalls after the Trump administration cut off all funding for aid to Palestinian refugees.

September 18, 2018
Raskin (et al.)-Kasparov after 22...Rf8-f6.

Central control: U.S. Chess Center celebrates new digs in suburban Maryland

With more than 100 area elementary and secondary students on hand and a virtual visit from the former world champion Garry Kasparov, the U.S. Chess Center got off to a rousing start at its new home in downtown Silver Spring Saturday, a location organizers hope will boost the Center's visibility and accessibility for chess players around the Washington region.

September 11, 2018
Carlsen-Caruana after 23...Re8-e6.

Ample chess skill, low drama sometimes when the best play the best

The plague of draws that infected the 6th Sinquefield Cup that wraps up this week illustrates that paradox that pairing off the world's greatest players doesn't always produce the world's most scintillating chess. The St. Louis field, with an average rating of 2788, boasted world champion Magnus Carlsen, top-rated American challenger GM Fabiano Caruana and eight more of the planet's very best players.

August 28, 2018