At present, the MTS test network incorporates three UMTS base stations, a circuit switching and packet oriented switch and a controller. The Russian Ministry of Communications is hoping that the network will also be used to allocate radio frequencies for the UMTS networks, as well as help with other technical issues.
Raymond Armes, president of Siemens, Russian department, said to the press, The success of the first UMTS test voice call in Russia demonstrates that MTS, together with European leading operators, is on the correct path towards 3G communications, and proves the fact that 3G technologies can realistically be launched in the near future. We are very pleased with the cooperation between our two companies in the GSM world, which started in 1994 and is successfully continuing in the UMTS world.
