A top Kremlin advisor, who quit his post and left the country in protest just a month after Russia invaded Ukraine, has been hospitalised with a rare neurological disease.
Anatoly Chubais, 67, known as the “father of the oligarchs” who left Russia with “no plans to return” in March this year, has been diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome.
He had served as Vladimir Putin’s special representative for ties with international organisations before he resigned and left Russia in March.
According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, “Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is a rare disorder where the body’s immune system damages nerves. The damage to the nerves causes muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis”.
It adds that while its cause is not fully understood, the syndrome often follows infection with a virus or bacteria.
The incident has raised concerns that Mr Chubais could have been poisoned, as per Russia’s long history of poisoning critics and opponents.
Mr Chubais’ diagnosis was first shared by Russian TV host Ksenia Sobchak on Sunday, citing Mr Chubais’ wife Avdotya Smirnova.
“Chubais is in an intensive care unit. I have just spoken to Avdotya. His condition is unstable. He felt sick suddenly, with weakness in his arms and legs,” she wrote on her Telegram channel.
“I was taken to a European clinic with Guillian-Barre syndrome. I am in a condition of medium gravity, stable,” the journalist quoted Mr Chubais as saying.
The New York Times reported that Ms Sobchak’s news channel mentioned that specialists in “chemical protection suits” examined the room in which Mr Chubais suddenly became ill.
Reuters also confirmed from two sources close to Mr Chubais that he is in an intensive care unit in an unknown location in Europe, with Ms Smirnova by his side.
One anonymous source was quoted as saying: “He thinks it’s a disease. Doctors say they found it in time.”
Mr Chubais can apparently talk but is unable to walk.
“I don’t think it is poisoning,” the source said. “He’s still in intensive care.”
No other details are available yet about the whereabouts of Mr Putin’s former aide.
A European intelligence agency is looking into the case but so far they have not disclosed the results.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin said on Monday that it was “saddened” by Mr Chubais’s hospitalisation and wished him a “speedy recovery.”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russia stands “ready to assist the ex-presidential adviser if he appeals for help”.
Mr Chubais served as former Russian president Boris Yeltsin’s chief of staff and was called the “father of the oligarchs” after he put 80 per cent of the country’s economy into private hands in the early 1990s.
In 2005, Mr Chubais survived a roadside assassination attempt. A powerful mine had exploded shortly after his armoured BMW passed over it.
