New Delhi: Russian climate envoy Anatoly Chubais has resigned over the Ukraine war and left the country, becoming the first senior Kremlim official to break ties with President Vladimir Putin since the invasion was launched a month ago.
The report was confirmed by two sources familiar with the situation, Reuters and Bloomberg reported. The Kremlin said Anatoly Chubais had resigned of his own accord, Reuters reported.
The 66-year-old was one of the principal architects of the 1990s' economic reforms and was Putin's boss in his first Kremlin job.
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Chubais is one of the very few officials who remained in Putin's government and had maintained close ties with Western officials, Bloomberg reported.
He had taken up several jobs at big state companies under Putin. He was named envoy for sustainable development last year.
The development comes as the Russian government steps up pressure on domestic critics of the Ukrainian invasion.
Last week, Arkady Dvorkovich, who was senior economic adviser to former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev and a deputy prime minister until 2018, stepped down as head of the state-backed Skolkovo technology fund after condemning the invasion. Dvorkovich is also president of the International Chess Federation.
Russia's invasion, which is now in its fourth week, has driven a quarter of Ukraine's 44 million people from their homes. Russia has failed to capture a single major Ukrainian city and has been isolated on the world stage and is facing crippling sanctions.