23 July 2008, Moscow. COMSTAR – United TeleSystems (COMSTAR-UTS OJSC, LSE: CMST), a major operator of integrated telecommunications services in Russia and the CIS, announces the appointment of Alexander Arnautov as the General Director of  Ural Telephone Company CJSC (UTC) (a COMSTAR-UTS’ subsidiary) – the leading alternative communications operator in the city of Yekaterinburg and Sverdlov region. 

A. Arnautov’s previous position was the General Director of Ural GSM CJSC. He superseded Mikhail Permyakov as the General Director of Ural Telephone Company CJSC.

“Alexander Arnautov has many years’ experience in managing Communications industry key enterprises in Yekaterinburg and Sverdlov region, which qualifies him as a thoroughly competent professional conversant with the region’s telecommunications market,” comments Vice-president for Regional Development Viktor Koresh, COMSTAR – United TeleSystems. “Ural Telephone Company, COMSTAR-UTS’ recent acquisition, will see an end-to-end reorganization under the guidance of A. Arnautov to our corporate standards and its integration into COMSTAR-UTS Group of Companies. The main areas of UTC’s growth will be residential Internet broadband access services and in the high-yield corporate segment, along with the launch and promotion of new services, including IP-TV, and realization of the license for provision of long-distance communications services.”

Alexander Arnautov was born in 1946. In 1979, he graduated from the All-Union Communications Electric Institute (Corresponding) majoring in   Automatic Telecommunications with qualification of a Telecommunications Engineer. During 1967 through 1969 he served in the USSR Armed Forces.  

A. Arnautov’s started his professional life in Communications industry in 1970, working for the Sverdlov Telegraph’s Sverdlov Communications Operations/Technical Administration, where he worked till 1989 in the capacity of Deputy Director. During 1989-1990, he was in charge of the Sverdlov General Post Office. During 1990 through 2001, he held office of the Director of Sverdlov Telegraph. In 2001, he was appointed the General Director of Ural GSM CJSC.