Telenor asks US court to block Alfa lawsuit

Norwegian telecom group Telenor asked a US federal court to halt a lawsuit brought against it in Russia by a company controlled by Russia's Alfa Group.

A Reuters report said the multi-billion lawsuit was filed in a Siberian court by Farimex Products, a fellow shareholder in Russian mobile operator Vimpelcom. Telenor has called it groundless and asked the US Federal District Court in New York to block it.

'Farimex is controlled by Alfa and its claim is just another one of Alfa's collusive lawsuits,' Telenor spokesman Dag Melgaard said, quoted by the Reuters report.

British Virgin Islands-based Farimex claims Telenor harmed Vimpelcom by preventing it from purchasing Ukrainian mobile group Kyivstar and delaying Vimpelcom's purchase of Ukrainian Radio Systems.