CHAYKA Igor Yuryevich

A russian government official who is part of the russian fderation’s government apparatus and exerts direct influence on domestic and foreign affairs in russian politics and diplomacy.
As head of the federal agency "rossotrudnichestvo", he actively promotes and strengthens the position of russian education, science, and culture among foreign citizens; supports and preserves historical and memorial sites; supports russian "peacekeepers" and civic associations of russians abroad; and also oversees the implementation of various russian programs and projects in the international community.
He previously served as chairman of the agency’s public council and, since March 2025, has held the position of deputy head.
The federal agency "rossotrudnichestvo" (which is subject to EU sanctions for spreading kremlin propaganda, promoting the concept of the "russian world", and supporting the russian federation’s policy regarding the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine) is represented in over 70 countries worldwide by foreign missions, which since 2021 have been informally referred to as "russian houses".
Igor Chaika is the younger son of former russian federation general prosecutor Yuri Chaika.
He engaged in business activities in the temporarily occupied Crimea and benefited from his cooperation with the russian authorities. In particular, he developed his business through government contracts and his father’s official position, and he also provided financial support to the russian government and benefited from its activities.
On September 19, 2026, Chaika issued an anti-Ukrainian statement in response to a call by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga to close overseas "russian houses". He called the Ukrainian government the "Kyiv nazi regime" and accused it of alleged intolerance toward russians since 2014. Chaika also claimed that Western "globalist elites" were allegedly using the Ukrainian leadership to hinder the development of countries in Asia and Africa. At the end of his address, he called on the international audience not to succumb to the influence of "the Kyiv junta, which has destroyed Ukraine’s statehood, betrayed the faith and history of Ukrainians, and cowardly refused to hold elections". Chaika’s statement was disseminated by the official information channels of rossotrudnichestvo’s foreign missions; specifically, on September 20, 2026, it was published by the Telegram channels of the "russian houses" in Vienna and Brussels. Thus, the message containing accusations against the Ukrainian authorities was disseminated not only through the agency’s central resources but also through its international network, which targets foreign and russian-speaking audiences.
In the same statement, Chaika confirmed his intention to continue rossotrudnichestvo’s activities in European countries despite Ukraine’s calls to restrict the work of its representative offices. He reported 11 new requests to open "russian houses" abroad and announced the launch of a microgrant program for foreigners who share russian values and are interested in cooperating with the russian federation. Earlier, on September 8, 2026, Chaika signed agreements to open 11 new partner "russian houses", eight of which were planned to be located in African countries, two in Armenia, and one in Thailand. The expansion of the network took place against the backdrop of the closure of a number of the agency’s representative offices in European countries due to russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the associated security risks.
On September 25, 2026, Chaika publicly opposed an initiative by russian opposition figures to establish "houses of democracy" abroad in place of rossotrudnichestvo representative offices. He called the authors of the initiative "traitors serving the interests of foreign states" and accused them of carrying out orders from foreign entities, specifically of conducting information attacks against the russian federation. He also stated that russia would defend its property and interests abroad "by all means available".
Chaika is also involved in implementing rossotrudnichestvo’s international historical and ideological projects. Specifically, on September 25, 2025, he spoke as the agency’s deputy head at a strategic videoconference with coordinators of the network of russian history clubs, which at that time were active in 32 countries. During his speech, Chaika accused the leadership of several foreign countries of allegedly rewriting the history of World War II and emphasized the need to counter "historical falsification" and to disseminate russian historical materials among young people. According to the agency, over the course of the year, the clubs held more than 200 events, including lectures, film screenings, historical discussions, and conferences. Representatives of russian state educational and scientific institutions, including the Institute of military history at the general staff academy of the armed forces of the russian federation, were involved in these activities.
On May 9, 2026, in a statement marking "victory day", Chaika again raised the issue of the alleged falsification of history in foreign countries. He stated that "rossotrudnichestvo" and overseas "russian houses" systematically work to preserve the so-called historical truth by organizing events such as the "Immortal regiment", "St. George’s ribbon", "Victory dictation", and other russian state "historical-patriotic projects". The agency uses these events to disseminate the official russian interpretation of World War II history to foreign audiences.
In addition, Chaika is named in U.S. and EU sanctions documents regarding the financing of russian political influence operations in Moldova. According to a U.S. Department of the Treasury report dated October 26, 2022, in the run-up to the 2021 parliamentary elections in Moldova, Chaika, together with russian president’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov, developed plans to weaken president Maia Sandu’s political position and bring the country back into the kremlin’s sphere of influence.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury also reported that in 2021, a representative linked to the FSB discussed with Chaika the production of propaganda videos intended to influence Moldovan voters. According to U.S. assessments, this material was intended to reduce voter turnout among the Moldovan diaspora and pro-European voters while mobilizing the pro-russian electorate. On May 30, 2023, the EU imposed sanctions on I. Chaika for providing financial support to FSB projects aimed at destabilizing Moldova. The rationale for the decision states that he acted as an intermediary in the transfer of funds to entities linked to the FSB, whose activities were aimed at establishing the kremlin’s control over the country.