EU mobile operators must do more to ease voice communication between Ukraine and Europe

March 2, 2022

An open letter from Matteo Gatta, CEO of BICS, to EU mobile operators

We must do everything we can to connect Ukrainian citizens with their loved ones, out of the country.

I am urging EU mobile operators to remove all charges on voice calls coming out of Ukraine and terminating into their networks. BICS will play its role by carrying this traffic at no cost.

At the very least, European Mobile operators should bring their termination costs in line with MTR costs (mobile termination rates) for calls within the European Union, which will still allow Ukrainian operators to reduce the cost of these calls for their subscribers. Also in this case, BICS will play its role by carrying this traffic at no cost.

Telecoms is critical infrastructure and being able to connect people with their loved ones has never been more important than it is now. I call for united action in this urgent time of need.

*Operators can remove origin based roaming (OBR) surcharge, an additional charge on the routing of calls based on where that call originates. MTRs have been regulated within the EU, meaning that there is no extra charge for routing a call within the EU. However, as Ukraine, is not within the EU, these calls are subject to additional charges. These charges are entirely within the control of mobile operators and are not dictated by BICS or any EU regulations.