Chess and Politics: Armenia and Azerbaijan

Here's an interesting but somewhat rambling article that seems to at least mention practically everything in contemporary chess: the Queen's Gambit, women in chess, Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, online chess, how much the top chess streamers are making, that Kasparov, Levon Aronian, and Teimour Radjabov* all had Jewish fathers, etc. The focus, though, is on the tension between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and some of the ways this has played out in the lives of Kasparov, Aronian, and to a lesser degree Radajbov. It's a sad state of affairs, but worth your time, especially if you're unfamiliar with the always simmering tension between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

* A minor note: the piece refers to Teimour Radjabov as once the youngest player to earn the grandmaster title. This is not true, though some made the claim at the time, too: the record-holder when Radjabov earned the title was Bu Xiangzhi, who was born in 1985 and became a grandmaster aged 13 years, 10 months and 13 days. Radjabov, born in 1987, earned the title at the age of 14 years and 14 days. (See here and here.)