AMSTERDAM -- VimpelCom Ltd. ("VimpelCom" or "the Company") (NYSE: VIP) announced today that Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO of Telenor Group, will rejoin the Supervisory Board of VimpelCom with immediate effect. Mr. Baksaas is replacing Jan Edvard Thygesen who has been appointed deputy CEO and COO of the Company as of January 1, 2012.

Biography Jon Fredrik Baksaas
Mr. Baksaas has been President and CEO of Telenor Group since June 2002. Prior to becoming the President and CEO, Baksaas served as Telenor's Deputy CEO, CFO and Executive Vice President with the overall responsibility for Telenor's networks and communication services in Norway, one of the world's most advanced countries in ICT usage. Before joining Telenor in 1989, he served as CFO in Aker AS, CFO in Stolt-Nielsen Seaway and held finance related positions in Det Norske Veritas (DNV) in Norway and Japan. Baksaas is currently a board member of Svenska Handelsbanken AB, GSMA Association and the Advisory Council of Det Norske Veritas (DNV).Mr. Baksaas holds a Master of Science degree from the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration and has additional qualifications from IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland.

VimpelCom Ltd. (NYSE: VIP)