Anatoly Chubais, High-Ranking Putin Critic, Hospitalized With ‘Sudden’ Illness In Europe

A former top Russian official Anatoly Chubais, who was once the mayor of St. Petersburg and is now a vocal critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was reportedly hospitalized at an undisclosed European location. The news was broken by the Russian anti-Putin TV reporter, Ksenia Sobchak.

Chubais quit a high-ranking position as the Kremlin’s special envoy to the environment and left the country back in March. According to sources close to him, Chubais made the decision in protest of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Sobchack quoted Chubais who apparently said, “I was hospitalized in one of the European clinics with a diagnosis of Guillain-Barr syndrome. Condition of moderate severity, stable.” She also spoke to his wife who said Chubais, “Felt bad very suddenly, he began to stop feeling the arms and legs.”

Guillain-Barre syndrome is a condition where the immune system attacks the nerves. It begins as a weakness in the body and can cause difficulty walking, speaking, intense soreness, and even paralysis. While the cause of his illness is unclear, some are comparing this sudden illness with other Putin dissidents who were allegedly poisoned by the Kremlin.

Potential victims of Russian poisoning include the country’s opposition leader Alexei Navalny and sanctioned billionaire Roman Abramovich.