Uzbek Court Reverses Decision To Seize Russian Mobile Operator's Assets

The Tashkent City Court in Uzbekistan has reversed a September ruling to seize assets belonging to Russia's largest mobile telecommunications company.

According to the November 9 decision, the company, MTS, was ordered to pay a $600 million penalty to compensate for alleged tax evasion and embezzlement at the company's Uzbek subsidiary, Uzdunrobita.

The decision comes a week after Russian investigators seized a Moscow apartment worth $10 million belonging to Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of Uzbekistan's president.

The apartment was seized in connection with a criminal investigation into the confiscation of MTS property and assets in Uzbekistan.

In September, the Tashkent Criminal Court sentenced four managers of the MTS subsidiary to three-year suspended sentences and ordered the confiscation of the subsidiary's assets.

Based on reporting by AP, Interfax, and ITAR-TASS