FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov expressed a wish to see Armenian team at Azeri-hosted World Cup and Chess Olympiad.

Accoridng to Azerisport, Ilyumzhinov plans to discuss the matter with the Armenain leader, chess federation president Serzh Sargsyan.

Armenian sportsmen’s participation at Baku-hosted tournaments has always abounded in unpleasant incidents and concerns over the delegation’s safety. In 2012, Armenian chess team leader Levon Aronian addressed a letter to Ilyumzhinov explaining his refusal to participate in Baku-hosted Candidates Tournament.

“General atmosphere in Azerbaijan and continuous tensions between our countries make my participation in such high ranked tournament in Azerbaijan impossible. A responsible and important event, such as the Candidates Tournament, requires peace of mind and special concentration. No circumstances, if they are not chess-related, should prevent the grandmaster from demonstrating all of his skills. Unfortunately, at this moment no Armenian can find favorable or adequate psychological atmosphere in Azerbaijan, whereas that is something absolutely necessary,” the Armenian grandmaster’s letter said at the time.