Well-known post-Soviet reformer Anatoly Chubais, who left Russia following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, is reported to be in intensive care in a hospital in Europe with a rare immune disorder.
Details over Chubais's condition remained sparse on August 1, a day after Russian TV personality Ksenia Sobchak, a friend of Chubais, wrote on Telegram that she had spoken with Chubais’s wife, Avdotya Smirnova, who told her that her husband was suffering from Guillain-Barre syndrome and is in intensive care in an unspecified European hospital.
Reuters quoted two other sources on August 1 as confirming Sobchak's report that Chubais, 67, believes he is suffering from Guillain–Barre syndrome, a disease caused by the immune system damaging the peripheral nervous system.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had no information about any requests from Chubais, who once served as former President Boris Yeltsin's chief of staff, or his representatives for help.
"Certainly, this is sad news and we wish him a quick recovery, but we have no details [of the situation]," Peskov said, adding that Russian officials are ready to provide "all Russian citizens with help."
Sobchak quoted Chubais as saying his condition was “moderate, stable.”
According to Italy's la Repubblica newspaper, Chubais fell ill while visiting a resort on the island of Sardinia.
The newspaper said local police are investigating the situation to check for any foul play, such as poisoning, though Reuters quoted one source as saying that, at this time, they didn't think poisoning was the cause.
Several opponents of Putin’s rule have suffered from poisoning attacks, often outside of Russia.
The Kremlin has denied trying to poison its foes despite strong evidence in many cases implicating Russian authorities.
Before leaving Russia in March, Chubais resigned his position as Russian President Vladimir Putin's envoy for stable development.
He did not say why he was leaving either the post or the country, but many observers have speculated that it could signal the highest-profile protest inside the Kremlin against Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Bloomberg reported that Chubais had expressed opposition to the invasion of Ukraine upon his departure.
Chubais is well-known in Russia, having held high-profile posts since the early 1990s, when he oversaw the efforts to sell off some of the country's biggest industrial assets during Yeltsin's time in office.