Russia's third-largest phone company MagaFon announced today plans to begin selling the new 3G iPhone, later this year.

The move will mark the first time Apple's popular phone has been officially available in Russia. Thus far, eager buyers have had to settle for $1,000 "gray market" versions of the phone, according to the Associated Press.

Russia has proven to be on of the biggest markets for the phone, with some 500,000 first generation phones currently in use.

"Typically Russian operators are not strong handset sellers, and users prefer to buy handsets separately from their mobile contracts," UralSib telecoms analyst, Konstantin Belov, told AP. "But the iPhone is very popular, and if mobile operators start subsidizing it, they will probably see strong demand."