No claim against Yukos-Sibneft illegal merger

The Russian anti-trust ministry has received no claims about the illegal merger of Yukos and Sibneft companies, Minister for Anti-Trust Policy Ilya Yuzhanov said Thursday.

As of yesterday we have received no claim, said the minister.

It was earlier reported that citizen Igor Smykov had filed a claim to a district court of Moscow against the illegal decision of the anti-trust ministry which had approved the merger of the two companies.

After three months' checks under the anti-trust legislation the ministry agreed to the merger with some reservations aimed to protect competition, said Yuzhanov.

The anti-trust ministry has no reason to review this decision only because a physical person has filed a legally dubious claim, the minister stressed.

Yuzhanov believes that in view of the public and media attention to the merger, it would have been difficult to conceal a wrongdoing. "Therefore there are no chances of making illegal steps, including on behalf of anti-trust bodies," said the minister.

The first session on the case is slated for December 5, Yuzhanov said.

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