According to him, this “problem” was caused by the opportunity given to recruits to choose their place of service.
“Of course, soldiers from Jõhvi, Kohtla-Järve and Narva preferred to serve close to home, and at some point there were more Russian-speaking soldiers in the Viru battalion than Estonian-speaking ones,” the general said.
At the same time, he emphasized that “they don’t speak Russian” with soldiers who do not speak Estonian.
Palm later added that the army is now spreading out recruits more widely.
Earlier, ex-Rada deputy Irina Farion condemned Russian-speaking soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces for violating the rules.
Also, the Minister of Education of Lithuania Gintautas Jakstas proposed to abandon education in Russian.