April 2, 2003 Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said it raised its long-term corporate credit rating on Uralsvyazinform to ‘B’ from ‘B-’, outlook stable.

Rating rise reflects the net benefits of the company’s merger with 6 fixed-line incumbents in the Urals region. Standard & Poor’s expects Uralsvyazinform to continue with its network modernization and structural reorganization showing good financial performance.

More details on Uralsvyazinform’s ratings upgrade are available on Standard & Poor’s web-site at www.standardandpoors.com and Uralsvyazinform web-site at www.uralsviazinform.com

In 2001 the company was also assigned Fitch Rating ‘B’, outlook stable.