Only July 29, 2002 a meeting of the Board of Directors of OJSC North Western Telecom was held.  The meeting was called to address current operations and the financial and economic activity of the company.  In addition, the Board of Directors of the company discussed the statement of resignation tendered by director general of OJSC North Western Telecom S.V. Soldatenkov and passed a resolution to accept his resignation on the basis of his personal statement.  The Board of Directors then appointed Alexander Abramovich as acting director general of the company.  A general shareholders meeting of OJSC North Western Telecom is to be held in absentia on September 6, 2002, during which the final decision is to be made on whether to relieve S.V. Soldatenkov of his position and approve a new director general of the company.  An advertisement is to be published within the next few days concerning the upcoming meeting, which is to be convened, including the voting procedure and the deadline for nominating candidates to the position of director general of OJSC North Western Telecom. 

In his resignation speech delivered to his colleagues, S.V. Soldatenkov made the following remarks: 

            - My tenure as CEO of OJSC North Western Telecom has been one of the most meaningful periods of my professional career.  I would like to express my appreciation to the entire team and staff of North Western Telecom for the support and assistance that they have consistently given to me.  On the 120^th anniversary of the telephone business in Saint Petersburg three large telecommunications operators in Saint Petersburg have merged into a single business and financial structure, which is now experiencing rapid development.  The strategic task of OJSC North Western Telecom is nearly complete - to create a mega-merger of telecom operators in the North Western region of Russia.  But there are many important challenges, which lie ahead for the company, and these challenges will require the expertise of a highly skilled telecom professional.  I know for a fact that Alexander Abramovich Sysoyev is an extremely gifted manager and a top professional in the industry. I am confident that he will be appointed by the shareholders of OJSC North Western Telecom at the next general shareholders meeting.  

A.A. Sysoyev, in turn made the following remarks after being appointed as acting director general:  

"Please allow me to express my appreciation to the Board of Directors of OJSC North Western Telecom for the trust they have placed in me.  I can also venture to say that the merger of OJSC North Western Telecom has come to fruition under the leadership of OJSC Svyazinvest, the Board of Directors of OJSC North Western Telecom and director general Sergey Vladimirovich Soldatenkov.  Ahead of us lies the challenge of unifying all the regional operators of the North Western region into a single business structure. Coming into the company's management at such an auspicious moment, I am mindful of how important it is to maintain the succession of corporate policy which has been set in place by the shareholders of OJSC North Western Telecom. I feel confident that the highly skilled team of OJSC North Western Telecom will rise successfully to meet this challenge".  

For the record:   

A.A. Sysoyev was born in Leningrad in 1949. During his lengthy 36-year professional experience he has worked in the telecom industry for 26 years. He graduated from the M.A. Bonch Bruyevich Leningrad Electromechanical Engineering Institute with a major in telecommunications.  In 2002 he received his second degree, having graduated from the Saint Petersburg State University of Economics and Finance with a major in credit and finance. From 1976 until 1998 Mr. Sysoyev was employed at the old and illustrious Saint Petersburg Telegraph, working his way up the corporate ladder from engineer to director general.  From 1998 to 2002 he has been working as CEO of Lensvyaz, a traditional operator which provides telecom services in the Leningrad region.