Moscow, Russia – December 18, 2007 – “COMSTAR – United TeleSystems” JSC (“Comstar” or “the Company”) (LSE: CMST), the leading combined telecommunications operator in Russia and the CIS, today announced that its broadband subscriber base has exceeded 40,000 users in the Russian regions, reflecting a 70% growth year on year.

Digital Telephone Networks South (“DTN”), the largest alternative telecommunications operator in the Southern Federal District of Russia, accounts for over 30,000 of Comstar’s broadband subscribers in the regions. Acquired in the second half of 2007 and 100% owned by Comstar, DTN offers telecommunication services, Internet access and Pay-TV in Rostov-on-Don, Rostov region and Krasnodar. Comstar also provides broadband services in St Petersburg, the Samara, Saratov, Tyumen and Orenburg regions, as well as in the Yamalo-Nenets and Khanti-Mansi Autonomous Areas.

Comstar Group companies started offering broadband services in the second half of 2007 based on their own NGN infrastructure in the regions.

Comstar’s Tyumen branch created on the basis of Tyumenneftegassvyaz more than tripled its subscriber base due to the active development of ADSL-based services during the second half of 2007. Tyumen branch is planning to increase its broadband access points by 10,000 ports in 2008. In September, Saratov branch launched an IP MPLS-based NGN network which consists of 22 access points and covers the whole city. The branch also launched the telematic access points network based on ADSL2+ technology which comprises 37 access points and 5,000 ports. It signed up 2,500 subscribers in the three month period and continues to maintain high sales volumes. The management expects that this rollout will allow the Company to increase its market share in Saratov to around 10% by the end of 2007, compared to 1% at the beginning of 2007.

Viktor Koresh, Vice President for the Development of the Group’s Operations, commented: “The level of broadband subscriber growth in the regions in the second half of 2007 indicates a strong demand for these services. We view high-speed internet acces as the main growth driver of the Russian telecommunications market today. We plan to develop broadband services, based on our own infrastructure, through both organic growth and scale acquisitions of leading regional operators. We aim to increase our share in the alternative fixed-line communications market up to 25%.”