Treatment of the ruthenium chloride, CpRu(PPh3)(2)Cl, with the alkynyldithiocarboxylate anions, RC CCS2-, in refluxing THF affords the chelate complexes CpRu(PPh3)(kappa S-2,S-S2CC CR) (1) (R = Bu' (a), Bu" (b), Ph (c), SiMe3 (d)) in high yield. The room temperature reaction of the solvated species, [CpRu(PPh3)(2)(NCPh)](+), with the alkynyldithiocarboxylate anions, RC CCS2-, produces the chelate complexes 1 and the mono-coordinated complexes CpRu(PPh3)(2)(kappa S-S2CC CR) (2). Complexes 2 are converted to 1 in solution so that they were characterized spectroscopically. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.