One of the defining transnational business battles of our time came to a quiet close on Oct. 20 with the final antitrust clearance for the creation of VimpelCom Ltd. The $23 billion company melds the Russian and Ukrainian cell phone assets of the warring parties, Telenor ASA of Norway and Alfa Group, controlled by the Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman.
Aside from the usual entertainment value provided by oligarchs with spare millions to spend on litigation, the VimpelCom dispute offers a primer in the use of arbitration and Western courts to defend against the abuse of courts in the developing world by sharp-elbowed local business partners.
