On February 12, FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and the President of Moldova Igor Dodon attended the audience with the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hassan Rouhani.Ilyumzhinov said that after New York, where the fate of the chess crown was determined in the match between Carlsen and Karjakin, the world's attention is focused on Iran, where we will know the name of the new chess queen. Later the head of FIDE invited Hassan Rouhani to attend the closing and awarding ceremonies of the Championship.
In turn, Rouhani stated that "chess unite people regardless of their views and beliefs."
On the same day, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and Igor Dodon had a business meeting with the head of the Central Bank of Iran Valiollah Seif.
