Written and oral tests for Mandarin are being included in Russia's national college entrance exam as an elective foreign language, according to announcement by Sergey Kravtsov, deputy minister of education and science of the Russian Federation reported in Sputnik News.

The deputy minister said the change to the college exams was three years in the making, but that supporting materials and resources are now in place.

Students in Russia are expected soon to sit elective foreign language exams on five languages: English, French, German, Spanish, and now Mandarin.

The announcement on Wednesday comes after earlier reports said Russia's Education Supervision Bureau was aiming to have completed preparations for the inclusion of Mandarin by 2020.