OREANDA-NEWS. On 09 April 2008 Mobile TeleSystems OJSC, the largest mobile phone operator in Russia and the CIS, announced that its CEO Leonid Melamed joins the Board of the GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade association for the mobile industry.

GSMA's board members include 25 operator representatives, the Chair of the Executive Management Committee - the body that manages the Association's ongoing activities in the area of products and services - and the GSMA CEO Rob Conway. Board members include executives of such leading global operators as China Mobile, AT&T, Orange, Telefonica O2 Europe, T-Mobile, Vodafone, and Telenor Mobile.

“We are glad to welcome Mr. Melamed as the new GSMA Board member. This stands as a recognition of MTS’ success in the Russian and CIS markets, and the acknowledgement of the personal role of MTS’ CEO in the financial and operational achievements of the company,“ noted GSMA CEO Rob Conway.

“It is a great honor for me to represent our company, our customers and our markets within such a highly regarded forum. Serving in this capacity brings benefits to our organization, which will gain from closer interaction with the world's leading operators, and our customers, who ultimately will benefit from cutting-edge products and services,” said Mr. Leonid Melamed, President and CEO of MTS.

Mr. Melamed continued: “I am confident that the involvement of MTS, as the region's largest operator, will raise the profile of our markets in the eyes of leading technology and telecommunications stakeholders.”

The GSM Association (GSMA) is the global trade association representing more than 700 GSM mobile phone operators across 218 countries and territories of the world. The Association's members serve more than 2.5 billion customers - 85% of the world's mobile phone users.