UPDATE: Putin’s administration head Ivanov to chair Rostelecom board

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MOSCOW, Jun 15 (PRIME) -- Russian telecom giant Rostelecom has received a state order on the appointment of head of the presidential administration Sergei Ivanov as a chairman of the company’s board of directors, which he has just joined, Rostelecom’s President Sergei Kalugin told reporters Monday.

The board of directors is going to hold a meeting in absentia to elect its chairperson later on Monday or on Tuesday.

“We’ll hope that the company will benefit from it. Personally, we are glad...He has a very positive personality, advanced and creative, that is why I think it’s a good story for us,” Kalugin said.

Earlier on Monday, Rostelecom’s shareholders elected members to the board of directors, which was joined, for the first time, by Ivanov.

Finnish businessman Seppo Remes, who had been refused an entry visa in Russia for five years, was not elected to the board.

The board, comprising 11 people, was also joined by Gazprombank’s Executive Vice President Alexander Pchelintsev and Alexander Auzan, dean of the economics faculty at the Moscow State University.

Italian independent member David Benello, board member at Telekom Malaysia and former head of McKinsey, as well as Igor Kozlov, advisor to the communications minister, and Mikhail Lesin, former head of Gazprom-Media, left the board.

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