(Telecompaper) The European Union's antitrust authorities have approved the merger of Italian mobile operators Wind and 3 Italia after parent companies VimpelCom and CK Hutchison agreed to free up assets to help France's Iliad create a fourth network operator. The entry of Iliad was key to securing the European Commission's approval after it blocked CK Hutchison's proposed merger of its 3 UK subsidiary with Telefonica's O2 UK earlier this year. "We can approve the deal because Hutchison and VimpelCom have offered a strong remedy that enables a new mobile network operator, Iliad, to enter the Italian market," said EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager.