Peterd28,
Agreed, but most other places have come a little way forward and have given up operating like this. These guys haven't.
I have heard first hand from Western FO's that former Soviet era Capts do tend to place less emphasis on the clean wing policy, than us Westerners now do.
Ask any Scandi FO who has worked for airBaltic, how many times he /she had to insist to ex Aeroflot guys that they de-iced (unless he fancied departing single crew. )