FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Telekom <DTEGn.DE> CEO Tim Hoettges welcomed a request by Germany's cartel office to rule on Vodafone's <VOD.L> proposed takeover of Liberty Global's <LBTYA.O> German unit, and reiterated his opposition to the deal.
"I expressly welcome this," Hoettges said of the request regarding the deal, which is currently before European Union regulators in Brussels, siding with other German critics of the combination.
Hoettges said the $26 billion takeover by Telekom's U.S. unit T-Mobile <TMUS.O> of Sprint Corp <S.N> was on track and he saw no reason to doubt that it would win regulatory approval, as expected, in the first half of 2019.
CFO Thomas Dannenfeldt, asked about a takeover of Tele2's <TEL2b.ST> Dutch unit by Telekom's local arm, said a constructive dialogue was continuing as the EU conducts a review that is due to be completed on Nov. 30.
(Reporting by Douglas Busvine; Editing by Michelle Martin)
