On May 20, 2003 Board of Directors of "Southern Telecommunications Company" PJSC approved the resolution on recommending Annual General Shareholders' Meeting to pay the following dividends for the year 2002:

• preferred share dividends amounting to 0.1607 ruble per one share to be paid in cash prior to August 24, 2003
• common share dividends amounting to 0.0812 ruble per one share to be paid in cash prior to December 31, 2003

Annual General Shareholders' Meeting of "UTK" PJSC shareholders will be held on 25 June, 2003 at 11:00 a.m. local time at the address: "Health-care complex "Orbita", village Olginka, Tuapse Region, Krasnodar Territory.

Agenda of the Annual General Shareholders' Meeting:

• Approval of annual report, balance sheet, income statement and allocation of profits and losses based on the results of the reported financial year (2002).
• Approval of dividend size, form, order and date of payments for each category and type of shares for the year 2002.
• Election of the members to the Company's Board of Directors.
• Election of the members to the Company's Auditing Commission.
• Approval of the Company's auditor for the year 2003.
• Determination of the size of remuneration to be paid to the members of the Board of Directors.
• Approval of new edition of Regulations on the procedure for conducting a General Shareholders' Meeting.