Comstar UTS, a Russian land-line operator, announced today that it has started building a mobile broadband network using WiMax technology in Armenia. Comstar will buy base station equipment from Airspan Networks.

“We intend to launch the network this year and, therefore, become the first and the largest wireless broadband Internet operator in Armenia,” Comstar’s president, Sergei Pridantsev, said in a statement.

The WiMax network is scheduled provide commercial service in the second half of this year. A Comstar spokeswoman said the net work will cover 75% of Armenia’s population.

Comstar is part of the Russian conglomerate Sistema. Comstar provides voice, data, Internet, pay-TV and other services.