TeliaSonera's CEO Lars Nyberg says he is resigning after an independent review found the telecommunications company had failed to carry out a proper background check on an Uzbek partner.

The review found that TeliaSonera was not guilty of bribery in Uzbekistan - allegations that have dogged the company - but it did conclude that managers failed to conduct due diligence on Takilant, the Uzbek partner firm.

Takilant is believed to have been connected with Gulnara Karimova, daughter of Uzbekistan's autocratic ruler, Islam Karimov.

The firm helped TeliaSonera enter the lucrative Central Asian market in 2007 after the two sides signed a 2.3 billion kronor ($350 million) deal that included the purchase of a 3G operating license in the lucrative Central Asian mobile phone market.

Nyberg says the translation was legal.