The Crimean government is using the nationalized property of Ukrainian cellular communications operator Kyivstar, which belongs to Vimpelcom Ltd., to create a regional state mobile operator, Crimean IT and Communications Minister Dmitry Polonsky told Interfax.

"We are going to use [Kyivstar's nationalized property], and I hope that it can be the foundation for a Crimean state mobile operator to begin operating as soon as possible," he said.

Polonsky added that a portion of Kyivstar's property in Crimea became inoperable after the company stopped operating in the region in August 2014.

He also noted that one of Crimea's state enterprises would manage Kyivstar's nationalized property. "I think that the property will be transferred to the balance sheet of one of our state enterprises. Possibly Krymsvyaz, possibly Krymtelecom," the deputy prime minister added.

Crimea's cellular communications market, on which the K-Telecom monopoly currently operates, is in need of new players, Polonsky said. "Crimea needs [another] cellular operator. If this was a state [operator] that would be great," he said.